Against the Tide
by makingabetterworld
Summary: Harry's name comes out of the Goblet, creating a second Hogwart's champion. The Hufflepuffs are outraged. Does he have any support within the castle? Harry/Hannah /JK Rowling owns Harry Potter, not me!\\ **Note it's been indefinitely halted. Last chapter could be seen as an open ending, honestly.
1. The Gaze of Hundreds

**Harry's name comes out of the Goblet. The Hufflepuffs are outraged. Does he have any support within the castle? Harry/Hannah**

**This will be a Hannah-centric Fic. Jump inside the head of one confused student trying to understand her own feelings surrounding the Tri-Wizard Tournament as well as it's 4th champion.**

**Chapter 1: The Gaze of Hundreds**

Hannah Abbott was currently making her way down towards the Great Hall with her best friend Susan Bones for dinner and the selection of the three schools' champions. Hannah didn't consider herself to be beautiful, but she was proud of her nice dirty blond hair and light brown eyes. She wasn't vain or worried about other people's opinions too much. She valued her friends and house, Hufflepuff, like her family away from home. For this reason, she was attending the Halloween feast with every intention of supporting the selection one of their own, possibly Cedric Diggory. He was Hufflepuff's best and brightest option for the "glory" of the Tri-Wizard Tournament.

As Hannah and Susan finally made their way into the Great Hall and towards the Hufflepuff table, they could feel the excitement in the air created by the Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang students. They sat down next to some of their classmates: Ernie Macmillan, Zacharias Smith and Justin Finch-Fletchy. The boys were already deep into discussion and barely gave a welcoming nod towards the ladies. Food was already being served and it seemed as if people ate faster, then the selection would take place sooner.

"It's got to be Cedric guys! There is no one else of age that can compare to him at Hogwarts," boasted Zacharias. Both Justin and Ernie nodded their heads in agreement. "He's top of his class and a great prefect!"

"And now Hufflepuff can finally get some of the spotlight for once," added Ernie. "Wanna hear some rubbish? I overheard some of the Gryffindors talking about the champions. Once they heard Ced was entering, they laughed at the idea. Called him a 'pretty boy', not worthy of the title Champion."

"Of course," scoffed Zacharias, "Those bloody Gryffindors believe anyone outside their house is beneath them. They're only a fraction above Slytherin in my books."

Understanding where the conversation could end up, Justin questioned, "Who said that? I'm sure all Gryffindors aren't like that."

This comment caught the full attention of both Hannah and Susan. Most of their interaction with the Lions had been civil, if not friendly.

"Ron Weasley and Seamus Finnegan," spat Enie. It was clear that he didn't exactly value their opinions, but irritated him nonetheless. Hannah had to agree partially with Ernie, those two Gryffindors seemed prone to irrational behavior.

The group of Hufflepuffs all turned their heads over to the Gryffindor table to spot Seamus and Ron. Seamus was blathering on to a listening Dean Thomas, most likely on the upcoming picks. Ron was stuffing his face with all of the delicious food supplied by the feast. Although they all snorted in disgust at the eating of Weasley, Hannah's eyes had wondered over to the boy sitting to the right of Ron: Harry Potter.

Harry Potter was a slightly scrawny boy with jet black hair and emerald eyes. His hair always seemed wind-swept like he'd just gotten done flying. With the skill he shows on a broom playing quidditch, Hannah just assumed that flying was so ingrained within his blood that his hair was like that from birth. Hannah herself loved to fly, but Harry took it to a new level. The funny thing about Harry was that there seemed to always be rumors surrounding him at the end of each term. The rumors stretched from killing professor Quirrel to killing a fifty foot basilisk. With the close relationship that he had with Ron and Hermione, everyone assumed that they were somehow involved with the rumors. The trio were rarely seen without each other's company.

Hannah continued to think about Harry until he turned his gaze and met her eyes. She immediately blushed and looked away after being caught staring. Hannah would never have admitted it, but she had a small crush on Harry since the end of 3rd year. Originally, it was Susan that had a crush on the Boy-Who-Lived a few years ago and it was through her constant comments that caused Hannah to see the boy who really was Harry Potter. She hoped one day they could become friends. Who knew, maybe they could go flying together one day.

A hushed silence fell over the Hall as the food on the tables disappeared from in front of them. The student body watched expectantly as Professor Dumbledore got up from his seat at the head table. The other headmasters, along with Crouch and Bagman, all seemed tense for the ceremony.

Dumbledore spoke up, "If any of you are selected by the Goblet, please walk along the staff table and go into the back chamber behind me." As he finished speaking, the Hall dimmed it's candles until the Goblet of Fire was the main source of light with it's bright blue flame.

The flame changes into a deep red before spewing forth a piece of parchment, drawing an intake of breath from everyone present. Dumbledore caught the cindered paper and read off the contents clearly for everyone to hear, "The Durmstrang Champion is Victor Krum!" There was loud applause for the international quidditch star. Krum seemed to walk sullenly over to shake Dumbledore's hand and exit into the chamber.

As the goblet flamed up once more, everyone quieted down to hear the next champion. "The champion for Beauxbatons will be Fleur Delacour!" The hall applauded for her selection, especially the male population. Zacharias was one inch from falling out of his seat watching the backside of Fleur, Hannah had chuckle at her friend's self control. To Hannah's astonishment, Harry didn't seem to be drooling at the French girl like everyone else. He was merely clapping politely while looking amused at the state of Ron drooling.

Finally, the time for the Hogwarts champion had arrived and the Hufflepuffs in particular were buzzing with anticipation. Hannah's quick glace down the table showed that Cedric was waiting calmly for Goblet to choose. She could hear Zacharias, Ernie, and Justin chanting "Cedric" under their breath as the goblet flared for the third time.

Dumbledore cleared his throat as he caught the paper and called out, "The Champion of Hogwarts is Cedric Diggory!" A loud 'No!' could be heard from Ron, but it was drowned out quickly as the entire Hufflepuff table stood up to clap and stomp their feet in excitement for their housemate's selection. Cedric was grinning broadly as he stood up from the table. Hannah and Susan were hugging and jumping up and down in happiness. From over Susan's shoulder, Hannah could see Harry clapping and cheering for Cedric as he approached to shake Dumbledore's hand.

Only after a minute or so of nonstop cheering was the hall finally quiet enough for Dumbledore to continue speaking. "Excellent, we now have our three champions! Now it is up to all of you to show your support and..." but he was cut off as the Goblet once again blazed red. A collective gasp was heard as everyone's eyes followed a fourth smoldering piece of parchment that landed in Dumbledore's hand.

A look of disbelief fluttered across his face as he whispered, "Harry Potter."

To say that the Hall was deathly quiet would be an insult to graveyards everywhere. Every being, human and ghost alike, were now staring at Harry Potter. Harry's eyes were as wide as saucers and he seemed to be petrified looking into space. Hannah cast a furtive glance around the room to see similar shocked, confused, and angry gazes. Hufflepuff in particular seemed to be giving Slytherin a run for it's money with the feeling of absolute loathing radiating from the table. Her personal group of friends seemed to be seeing red and Hannah couldn't help but feel angry with them.

Professor McGonagall moved over to speak in whispers to Dumbledore as the Hall continued to formulate answers for why Harry's name came out of the Goblet. Harry seemed to have finally broken his lifeless gaze and was looking longingly towards his two best friends. The emotionless stares in return caused him to whisper pleadingly to them, "I didn't put my name in. You know I didn't." Although it was meant to be private, his pleading could be heard by everyone in attendance. He was getting no sympathy from this crowd.

Hannah momentarily felt a pang of sorrow for the boy, but it was quickly replaced with irritation as she once again saw how he had stolen her house's "moment". Her thought were interrupted by Professor Dumbledore once again calling for Harry to come up to the front. Hundreds of pairs of eyes watched as Hermione practically pushed Harry into the aisle between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. Hannah was somewhat glad that Harry wasn't near the Hufflepuff table because he would likely be attacked on his way to the front. Scattered people finally began to yell out "He's a cheat!" and "He's not old enough". Harry only walked past Dumbledore with a resigned look before disappearing behind the Staff's table.

As soon as he left the room, more student's began yelling about how unjust Harry's selection was. The judges of the tournament began to whisper angrily amongst each other before Dumbledore seemed to shut them all up before addressing the Hall, "All students, please leave in an orderly fashion towards your dormitories. Prefects, be sure to keep everyone together and under control." He immediately turned around and headed through the back doors, quickly followed by the remaining professors.

"Well that didn't seem to go as planned," commented Susan dryly as everyone finally got to their feet and began walking out of the Hall whispering amongst themselves. The only group that seemed anything but angry was the retreating Gryffindors. They seemed shocked but joyful at the newest revelation in the tournament; everyone except Ron Weasley though. He seemed to be seething in anger for some reason at his best friends actions.

While on their way towards the Hufflepuff common room near the kitchens, Hannah could hear her friends complaining to anyone that would listen.

"Who does Potter think he is? Does he think that just because he's the Boy-Who-Lived he is above all of the rules?" vented Ernie.

Zacharias only nodded before adding, "Like anyone will actually believe that performance in the Hall about him not entering his name. Bollocks!"

Justin tried to calm down his friends, "We should wait until Cedric comes back tonight. He might tell us that Harry isn't allowed in the competition."

"As if," snorted Ernie, "They could never turn down Potter in his quest to always be in the spotlight!"

Hannah decided to throw in her opinion, "You can't actually believe he's like that can you? You sound a bit like Malfoy."

Before Ernie could respond, Susan spoke up loud enough for them all to hear her, "He has to compete." At the incredulous looks around her, Susan elaborated, "The Goblet is a magically binding contract, my Auntie told me in a letter. If his name came out that means he is now apart of the tournament, whether we or anybody else likes it."

Susan's comment shut everyone up momentarily as they all began to file into the common room. The small group of friends found chairs next to the fireplace as they watched some of the older students set up for the party in celebration of Cedric. A few of them left for the kitchens as others began raising banners in the Hufflepuff colors.

After the refreshments came in, the wait was short before Cedric finally walked in to thunderous applause. Every single Hufflepuff was congratulating him and clapping him on the back as he made his way through the room. When everyone finally had refreshments and the volume in the room had dropped some, someone finally asked the question that was on everyone's mind, "So what are they going to do about Potter?"

Cedric seemed to sigh softly before speaking to his fellow Puffs, "Harry is now the fourth Tri-Wizard Champion." Cries of outrage were uttered by everyone in the room, including the Fat Friar, the Hufflepuff ghost. Cedric seemed to quiet everyone down by waving his hands. "Harry claims to not have entered the Tournament and he is being forced to compete by magical contract. There is nothing we can do about it." The only person in the room who seemed to have accepted the judges decision was Susan and Cedric.

A young muggleborn spoke up to ask a question, "What's a magical contract?"

"It's an agreement that if broken will cause you to lose your magic or possibly die," answered Hannah solemnly.

"Serves him right," muttered Zacharias, "He shouldn't be able to get away with this." There were mutterings of agreement amongst the house. Hannah may have been somewhat angry, but no one deserved that fate.

"Calm down guys, he's just a fourth year. I'm sure he'll be no competition. Who can stand up to the might of Hufflepuff!" shouted Cedric. There was a resounding cheer for their house and a round of "Hear, Hear"s around the room. Cedric was smiling a bit but it seemed forced.

The rest of the party went out without a hitch, except for the occasional muttering about "That-Bloody-Gryffindor".

After partying their fill, Hannah and Susan made their way past Ernie, Zacharias, and Justin towards their dormitory. The boys were having talks about making their mistrust known to Harry the next day. When the girls finally got under their covers to go to bed, Susan commented, "So much for school unity."

As sleep began to overtake Hannah, she pondered her best friends words. Did Susan take Harry's word for it or was she angry for him stealing Hufflepuffs chance at glory? Hannah could barely control her own emotions at that point, let alone someone else's. She went to sleep dreaming of those startled emerald eyes withering under the gaze of hundreds.

**For all of you that decided to read this far, I would appreciate reviews from everyone that is willing. All comments will be taken into account for general improvement whether it's for grammar or plot-line.**

**-BB (makingabetterworld)**


	2. Breaking Point

**Big thanks to tumshie, sweetgirl23, cldiva, , black potter 365, and Protege16 for all of their reviews! Keep up the reviews because I really do care about your opinions. Plus you get your name mentioned... think of the prestige. BTW Harry will be different.**

**Chapter 2: Breaking Point**

As Hannah woke up the morning after the selection ceremony, the events of the previous night flooded her mind. She immediately noticed that Susan was already getting dressed for breakfast, so she made an effort to hurry up so she could accompany her downstairs. They were usually two of the earliest students awake in Hufflepuff on a Sunday. They found it refreshing to get a quiet breakfast before the rush. Hannah had to scamper over to the showers in order to try and make up lost time.

As she sat under the warm water of her shower, she finally had a chance to mull over the facts so far. The only things that were certain was that Harry's name was chosen and he was nowhere near the appropriate age. Hannah did, however, find in curious that Harry's name didn't have an accompanying school on his parchment. Dumbledore had just read off his name.

Getting dressed and ready for the day ahead, Hannah's only conclusion was that he was most likely entered under no school to confuse the Goblet. Whether Harry entered willingly was up for debate within the school. Although she hoped he was telling the truth, she wasn't willing to believe his story publicly without evidence to back it up. Privately, she believed that Harry would never do something like this, but in order to show unity for Hufflepuff, she was willing to bury her real feelings for a bit.

Entering the Great Hall for breakfast, Hannah noted that it was much louder than a normal Sunday breakfast. Susan flashed a playful scowl in her direction as they saw the nearly filled tables. It seemed that everyone in the castle was still buzzing about the "four" champions. From the Hufflepuff table, Hannah could get a good look at all of the present Gryffindors. They all appeared to be enjoying their breakfast without a care in the world.

A snort from Susan drew her attention to her red-headed friend. "It appears the residential lions are celebrating the selection quite happily," mused Susan. "And a little hungover," she added by nodding towards a few seventh years. A few of them did look pretty ruffled and sleepy.

Hannah stifled a giggle as she remembered why they had been celebrating. "Don't they even realize that their champion is the cause of all this drama today?"

"Of course not," answered Zacharias haughtily. He was walking in with Justin and Ernie close behind. The three boys sat down opposite the already seated girls. "They would rather support a cheating housemate than the rightful champion of Hogwarts."

"We still don't know if he cheated or not guys," interjected Susan. Hannah silently cheered for her best friend , but she wasn't willing to voice her support out loud just yet. There was a reason she wasn't in Gryffindor. She was hoping to get more information by watching Harry at breakfast, but she couldn't see him. Ron and Hermione were eating next to each other. Harry was nowhere to be found.

As if reading her thoughts, Ernie voiced out her question, "Where is Potter anyway? His two sidekicks are eating." The five Hufflepuff students looked towards the Gryffindors and could see Ron talking loudly with Seamus while Hermione was quietly eating by herself.

"Bloody coward," muttered Zacharias. "Can't even face the school after the stunt he pulled last night. Some 'champion' he is."

"He could just be sleeping in you guys," commented Susan. "Some people just don't wake up as early as others." Her comment led to the two girls giving each other a playful shove.

Hannah watched as Hermione looked around the table worriedly, before she seemed to grab a couple slices of toast and wrapped them in a napkin. Justin seemed to see her leave as well, " I wonder where she's going. She must be getting a head start on homework or something in the library."

Hannah couldn't help but think that the slices of toast were meant for Harry. Hermione may be a bookworm, but even she knew to have a little time off from constant work. Somehow, the lack of Harry's attendance seemed to have disappointed the blonde Hufflepuff. She would just have to wait until class next week because she didn't catch a glimpse of him the rest of the weekend.

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During the next week of class, the fourth-year Hufflepuffs were anxious for Herbology class to come around. It was going to be their first class with Gryffindor, including Harry, since the champion selection. Another interesting point was that Professor Sprout was the teacher and happened to be the Hufflepuff Head of House. The house had agreed before hand to overwhelming support for Cedric in any way possible.

The stations were set up for two groups of three at each table. Each house had to be mixed and it just so happened that the three Gryffindors were paired with Justin and Ernie in the middle of the greenhouse.

When Hannah had walked into the greenhouse before class, she had noticed Harry sitting silently with Hermione while Ron seemed to make an effort not to talk to Harry. This confused her slightly. Normally those two were inseparable. Hannah caught his eye as she walked by his table, but upon him seeing no warmth in her eyes, he looked down at his shoes in what seemed to be sadness.

Whatever indication Hannah seemed to give him, seemed pretty subdued compared to the rest of her house. The Puffs appeared to glare at him in loathing every moment of class that wasn't occupied by time learning. No one said a word to him the entire class period. They were re-potting Bouncing Bulbs during the lesson and Harry seemed to have slight difficulty towards the middle of class when one of the bulbs wriggled free and smacked him right in the face. Justin and Ernie seemed happy that a plant seemed to be hating on Harry as well. They laughed quite obnoxiously at the incident.

When Hannah had a little bit of downtime, she cast a quick glance towards Harry's group. He was whispering to Hermione in what looked somewhat like forced conversation. She would once in a while turn to talk to Ron, but it once again seemed as if Ron and Harry weren't getting along. Proffessor Sprout seemed to notice the talking between Ron and Hermione from across the greenhouse and spoke, "Mr. Potter, I will not have talking during my class period! Next time you are caught will result in point loss!"

Harry wanted to defend himself, but he seemed to stop himself and accept it with with a defeated expression. The Hufflepuffs snickered at him being reprimanded.

The rest of the class passed without incident and as they walked back towards the castle, Hannah heard Ernie say, "Boy that felt good seeing Potter taken down a peg or two. We've got to make him regret ever entering himself."

"Yea, he's already starting to feel guilty," commented Justin. "Did he expect us to act like nothing happened? We'll teach him not to cross a group of loyal Hufflepuffs."

Hannah could only concentrate on what was brewing. 'This is only the beginning,' she thought to herself. She wasn't sure how long she could continue to accept her classmates actions against Harry. She was just afraid that they would call her a traitor to her own house.

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The days passed and Hannah hadn't really seen Harry since Herbology. After seeing how the Hufflepuffs were treating him from one class together, she was glad that she didn't have to see his depression. Word around school was that he seemed lost in thouhgt during most of his classes and was spending much more time alone. Since the whole school was still buzzing about the fourth champion, it was only natural that Hannah's fellow Puffs were talking about it in their common right now.

"I bet Potter's really enjoying his fame now guys," commented Zacharias. "His own best friend hates him for what he did." It was true. No one had seen Ron talking to Harry since the night the champions were selected. The only friend he seemed to have right now was Hermione, which inadvertently meant that Harry's library hours had increased. He didn't seem to mind though because he liked the solitude.

Hannah gave a quick glance over to Susan and spoke, "I don't know what I'd do if I lost my best friend." Something about having a majority of the school hating you without support made Hannah feel uneasy.

Ernie was tapping his chin with his fingers as if contemplating something. "Hmm. Loss of good friend temporarily or one thousand galleons along with the glory of being a champion? Hard choice for me," he replied sarcastically.

"The Chamber of Secrets," whispered Justin to himself. Everyone turned towards him in inquiry. Their glances showed concern. "This is like second year all over again. We're treating him like scum without checking facts again. I myself accused him of attacking students when he tried to tell everyone otherwise."

"Yea, but everyone thought he was the Heir. We were only believing what was accepted at the time." commented Zacharias.

"Yea Zac, but now WE are the ones causing all of this hate to him once more. If we possibly laid off of him, then everyone else would," fired back Justin. Hannah hoped that Justin would have an impact on everyone else. All she wanted was for Harry to get some support without losing her own friends because of their prejudice. If only she was more confident.

It was one of Hannah most shameful moments of her life when she was convinced that he was attacking students in second year. She saw the tormented look on his face when Hermione ended up petrified and immediately knew they were wrong all along.

Just then a random third year walked in holding a copy of the daily prophet. "Listen up guys, lets hear what the Prophet has to report. _Harry Potter was kind enough to give an exclusive interview and spoke __his true feelings,__ "__I suppose I get my strength from my parents. I know they'd be very proud of me if they could see me now. Sometimes at night I still cry about them, I'm not ashamed to admit it. I know nothing will hurt me during the tournament, because they're watching over me." _Look at this character. Trying to get sympathy through the Prophet."

"What a joke!" boasted Zacharias. "What kind of guy would say that to a paper. He must be desperate for some sympathy. It's good to see our efforts haven't been wasted." The common room chuckled a bit but Hannah had a disturbed look on her face. She had her doubts that he actually said any of those things. He was usually very reserved with anything especially on talks of his parents. Now that she was actually thinking about it, he _never_ talked about his parents.

"It's probably just Rita Skeeter brewing up a crazy story. She'll write anything she wants so she can get more readers. My Auntie has been trying to get her under control for years," interjected Susan. Hannah gave her a small smile as everyone else looked at her incredulously.

"Oh don't worry it gets even better, _"Harry has at last found love at Hogwarts. His close friend, Colin Creevey, says that Harry is rarely seen out of the company of one Hermione Granger, a_

_stunningly pretty Muggle-born girl who, like Harry, is one of the top students in the school." _

Hannah's stomach plummeted upon hearing those words and she began to stare down depressed. Harry was going out with Hermione? She didn't even have a shot with him now. How could she compare with one of his best friends. However, her actions didn't go unnoticed. Susan sent her a questioning glare, but let it drop for the time being.

Susan tried to ease Hannah a bit by interrupting again, "There's no way those two are going out. With the rumor mill here, nothing is kept secret THAT long. Like I said before, it's just Rita making up stories."

"That's not even the worst part of the article," continued the third year. "The actual article about the tournament doesn't even mention Cedric. Not in one bloody sentence!" That comment really set off the students present within the common room. It was hard to tell anything that was being said because of the amount of curse words being thrown about.

Any hope that Hannah had for her dorm-mates in laying off Harry were gone when someone brought in a box full of _Support Cedric Diggory_ badges. Zac smiled with glee as he tapped the badge and it read POTTER STINKS! In bold green.

A boisterous seventh year yelled out, "Now I want all of you to wear these to support Ced and Hufflepuff in general. I can't tell you to change the message to it's other setting, but I'll tell you now that it was Malfoy who created them." A couple people frowned at that revelation, but there were a fair few who instantly changed them to the taunting side.

Hannah was disgusted with her fellow Puffs. She immediately went up to her trunk and grabbed her Comet 260 so she could fly for a bit. She was going to clear her mind the way Harry would, with flying. She grudgingly put on the Support Cedric badge in order to leave the common room. They were actually checking to make sure she wore one. Before she had made it down one hallway, Susan had fallen in step beside her.

Seeing that Hannah wasn't about to offer any words, Susan questioned, "How long?"

Hannah stopped immediately and faced her best friend. "How long what?"

Susan merely sighed and asked, "How long have you fancied Harry? Don't lie."

"Since the end of last year," confided Hannah with a small blush. "I don't really know when it happened exactly. I was originally worried when he fell off his broom when he played us. I had never been that scared in all my life. Everyone always seemed to think he would be arrogant with his fame or possibly his skill on the field. After seeing him for years around school, the more I liked his quiet and thoughtful nature. The only time Harry would ever get angry was when his friends were threatened in some way. I noticed that he always seemed more at peace flying in the air than he ever did interacting with any of us. He's completely different person when he has his broom. I've never seen someone look so... free. After seeing how happy he was escaping his troubles, I felt compelled to possibly make him happy by offering a friend who understood him. A place to feel content during normal life."

"Plus it doesn't hurt that you want to run your hands through his hair and stare into those gorgeous green eyes..." interjected Susan. Hannah blushed a furious shade of red before swatting Susan on the shoulder, but it lacked any malice because she was giggling. "If you like him so much, why don't you support him when everyone else is isolating him. This seems like the perfect time to get to know him."

Hannah looked down in shame. "I'm afraid," she said simply. "I'm afraid of what our house will say if I'm all of a sudden helping the 'enemy'." She actually added in air quotes with her fingers to make a point.

"You should decide soon though. He might get the wrong idea if you keep this up. These badges obviously don't help too much."

Hannah merely sighed, "Yeah, I know. I'm only going to wear the Cedric side for the time being until I can choose. I'm flat out refusing to switch the message anytime soon."

Hannah didn't even realize that they had continued walking and were already down by the quidditch pitch. Susan motioned towards the pitch with a smile, "Well go on then." Susan understood that Hannah just needed some time alone up there.

She didn't need to be told twice. Hannah immediately took off into the sky and felt the wind rush through her hair, she started out doing laps to help clear her head. Quidditch never really appealed to Hannah because she thought that it would take away all of the fun of flying. After doing a couple dives and placing a smile on her own face, she looked towards Susan standing by the entrance. There appeared to be someone walking down.

As she landed next to Susan, she immediately blushed seeing that it was Harry walking towards them with his Firebolt slung over his shoulder. When he got close, he greeted the two Hufflepuffs kindly, "Hi Susan. Hi Hannah." He offered a small smile in Hannah's direction, which she readily returned. "How are you ladies doing today? You flew good out there Hannah."

"Thanks Harry," answered Hannah shyly.

"Coming down here to escape it all Harry?" questioned Susan.

Harry nodded in confirmation, "Yea, I need to clear my head a bit right now with everything that is going on." Inwardly, Hannah was celebrating that she understood his inner workings so well, but frowned knowing that she indirectly was a causing him to need to be out here. "Hannah?" interrupted Harry on Hannah's introspection. When she focused on him he continued, "Do you fancy flying a bit with me? I wouldn't mind a bit of company."

Hannah hoped that her shock wasn't so obvious on her face. She couldn't believe that he would be willing to share his "private time" with her.

Luckily Susan came to rescue, "She would love to Harry! Plus, if you ever need someone to talk to you could always come talk with us. Right Hannah?" She swatted Hannah's chest in a teasing manner, but she happened to accidentally tap the badge on her cloak an the words POTTER STINKS flashed brightly in Harry's face.

Hannah looked mortified as Harry's face darkened in pain before pushing past them on his way to the pitch. Without turning around, he shouted out, "Now that I think about it, it's a bit crowded for two!" He then shot off into the air without waiting for a response.

"Hannah," whispered Susan, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to do that. Hannah please speak to me!" Her pleading and shaking had no effect on her friend. Susan couldn't seem to gain Hannah's attention so she began to walk up towards the castle alone, leaving her best friend to gaze soullessly at the quidditch pitch's lone flyer.

Hannah watched as Harry flew with reckless abandon. Long gone was the joyful demeanor that she usually associated with Harry on a broomstick. Her heart almost burst as she watched him pull up from a two hundred foot dive. He was putting on moves that even the most skilled flyers shied away from. Thinking he was finally done, she was shocked when he began swerving in between the hoops at full speed. Harry didn't even seem to be bothered as his foot smashed violently into the last hoop.

Hannah gasped as she saw him get injured and looked on worried as he stubbornly continued to fly a few laps. When he was finally done, she hoped that he would land so she could explain what happened. Instead, he continued to fly towards the entrance of the castle without a backwards glance towards Hannah's running form.

She tried to follow him through the castle calling his name, but she finally stopped when he entered the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey wouldn't allow her to enter because of her lack of injury. Resigned, Hannah walked slowly towards the Hufflepuff common room. She couldn't help the tears that began to form within her eyes as she thought back on what happened down at the pitch. Her friendship was ruined before it even began.

As she entered the common room, she was stopped momentarily stopped by Susan before she reached the dorms. Susan placed a consoling hand on her shoulders and asked' "What happened?"

Hannah merely shook her head and pushed past towards their room. She immediately closed the curtains around her bed and buried her head into her pillows. Susan could only listen as her friend softly cried herself to sleep that night.

**Hope you liked it. Reviews are not only helpful to me, they also benefit you because it kicks me in the ass to write faster. Think about that haha.**

**-BB**


	3. Beliefs

**Thank you to all the wonderful reviewers! Caroline Elizabeth Salvatore, mwinter1, sweetgirl23, Protege16, HP-DG-SB-RR-HA-TD-LL-KB-AJ-NT, U2, call015, black potter 365, Belle Morte Rising, HolyDragoon, Benevolent Abyss, sableye, knightmare1986, voraciousreaderforever, and Penny is wise. Keep it up!**

**Chapter 3: Beliefs**

Hannah rose early following the incident at the quidditch pitch with Harry. She decided to get ready for classes a bit earlier than usual so she wouldn't miss the opportunity to see Harry at breakfast. As the warm water cascaded down her body, she was preparing her explanation. Harry would just have to listen to reason. She hoped that her actions hadn't completely thrown him into depression. The first task was rapidly approaching and he would need to be in top form. She couldn't live with herself if she continued to hurt him, which ironically she did both physically and mentally last night.

When she stepped out of the shower, Susan was just getting out of the adjacent one. Hannah realized that she must have been in the shower awhile if Susan had already caught up to her.

She was taken out of her thoughts with Susan interrupting her, "What's got you up so early? You do realize it's Saturday right?"

Hannah smacked her forehead, "Shoot, I just realized that! That means it's Hogsmeade today. Sorry, I wasn't really thinking clearly." She wasn't really too upset at missing valuable sleeping hours.

"Couldn't sleep much with what you had on your mind yesterday huh?" commented Susan. "Don't worry too much about it Hannah. Besides, Hogsmeade will give you the perfect time to speak with him outside the usual casual glances in the hallways."

"I was hoping to possibly see him before hand so maybe we could meet up at the Three Broomsticks," confided Hannah.

"Well we don't want to miss him, so let's hurry up."

They dressed quickly and made their way down towards the Great Hall. Before leaving, Hannah made sure to to throw off her badge in disgust. Susan also took her's off, in support of her best friend.

Hannah could feel her palms getting sweaty at the suspected confrontation. She began to steel herself and prepare her apology, but as the walked through the doors, she let out an audible groan. Harry wasn't even eating yet. Now that she looked at the table, she realized that Gryffindor didn't have any students there yet. Hannah could hear Susan grumble, "Courageous and brave but none of them can face the horror of morning."

As they both sat down, Susan popped the question, "So are you ever going to tell me what happened after I left last night."

Hannah was nervously playing with her fingers as she spoke, "It was so scary. He seemed so angry when he was up there. I've never seen him like that, ever. He probably broke his foot on one of the hoops because of his frustration. When I tried to follow him into the castle, he just kept his distance without even acknowledging me."

Susan's response was to just pat her arm consolingly and begin to pile food onto their plates. In the meantime, Ernie sat across from the two girls and engaged them in conversation. He took note of their lack of badges, but chose not to comment at the moment. Hannah was drawn away from her staring at the entrance by Ernie questioning, "Do you guys want to grab a few butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks later? Maybe we can trade some Chocolate Frog cards and relax. We haven't done that in a while."

Hannah shot him down pretty quickly. "Sorry Ernie, but I was hopping to meet up with someone today. I'm sure Susan would like too." At Susan's confirmation, Hannah resumed eating as she stared towards the doors.

After twenty minutes of eating quite slowly, Hannah noticed Harry walk in the Great Hall accompanied by Hermione. Harry had his head held high when the student body started whispering at his appearance. He looked to be carrying a large book which seemed odd to Hannah. Harry never read or did homework at breakfast. They seemed to be arguing slightly and she could barely make out what they were saying. "... but he's your best friend!"

"WAS my best friend, Hermione. He's been nothing but a prat the past week," rebutted Harry as they both sat down in close proximity to the Hufflepuff's.

"But you miss him!" insisted Hermione. "And he misses you! You can't let one fight break off your friendship. You need friends Harry!"

Harry contemplated for a moment before speaking once more, "No I don't. Not anymore. A true friend would have supported me when the _entire_ school hates my guts." Hannah whimpered when he revealed that. If only she had reached out to him sooner. "It's about time I moved on and started doing things my own way. Ronald," he sneered the name, "has been holding me back for too long." Harry then proceeded to begin reading the large book that was on the table.

Just when Hannah began to rise and talk to Harry with a revised apology, Hermione spoke up once again, "Won't you at least come grab a butterbeer with me? You've been reading that defense book nonstop since last night. You need to take a breather. Trust me, I know from experience." Hannah's heart plunged because she realized she might have been the one to set him off and force this change.

"No, I don't think I can Hermione. The first task is less than a week away and I still have no idea what to prepare for. Plus, the last thing I want is to be hounded by more people today than necessary." At his words, Hannah plopped back down into her seat in depression.

Hannah glanced over at Susan's apologetic face before turning once again to Ernie. "On second thought Ernie, I'd like to do that today."

Ernie's face lit up at his change in luck. He was blissfully unaware of why Hannah had changed all of a sudden. The three Hufflepuffs finished the rest of their meal in relative silence, not noticing the silent exchange and agreement between Harry and Hermione.

When Susan and Hannah finally left breakfast, they told Ernie to meet up with them at the Three Broomsticks. After running to the dormitory for her extra Chocolate Frog cards, they spotted Hermione a couple feet in front of them talking to Neville Longbottom. Suprisingly, Neville was talking quite animatedly with her. Normally, Neville was abnormally shy, but had an affinity for Herbology. From what they could hear, they were chatting about that topic. That made sense, Neville might actually be smarter than Hermione in that one subject.

Hannah noticed that after a minute or so, Hermione's eyes flashed back a few feet as if she were looking for someone. Taking it as a signal that she was looking back at them, Hannah rushed up to Hermione.

"Hi Hermione! Hi Neville."

"Hello Hannah!" answered Hermione. They could barely hear Neville's greeting. "Lovely day isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is," answered Hannah while looking down. She decided to act oblivious to why Harry wasn't with her. Hermione didn't seem to be hostile towards Hannah. Yet. "Where's Harry? I figured he would be coming down with you."

Hermione looked slightly exasperated, "Well, he didn't feel like being _seen_ right now in public. He's been acting strangely since last night though. After he came through the portrait last night, he went straight up to his room and began reading up on his defense books. It was kind of strange that he came back down to study with me. I've been trying to get him to study for over three years and then he seems so driven all of as sudden."

"It was kind of odd," piped up Neville. "He actually invited me to join both of them. No one really ever notices me." At this comment, both Hermione and Hannah looked sympathetic. "He also told me that he's going to start training in the mornings. He said I could join him if I wanted to." Just then Neville seemed to trip on a rock. He muttered something under his breath that sounded like "sorry".

Hannah just assumed the trip was just Neville being his normal clumsy self. She spoke up, "I think I may be the reason he changed so much last night." At seeing Hermione's unspoken relief, she continued, "Before you thank me, can you please arrange for him to speak to me? I really need to talk to him and set a few things straight." Before either of the Gryffindors could answer, Hannah fell back into Susan's presence to continue their trip towards Hogsmeade.

Susan put a friendly arm around her shoulders and tried to comfort her, "Just give it time Hannah. He'll see that you didn't mean to hurt him."

When they finally reached the village, they saw Hermione and Neville duck into Honeydukes. Since Hannah and Susan had already seen much of what Hogsmeade offered, they decided to grab a table inside the Three Broomsticks a bit earlier than usual.

The pub was already pretty busy because of the Hogsmeade weekend for students. It appeared that it was even more crowded than usual because of the spectators getting ready for the First Task. All sorts of people were mingling about with drinks. Hannah could spot Rita Skeeter at the bar with her personal scumbag photographer, Bozo. Upon seeing her ugly crocodile-skin handbag, Hannah was slightly comforted by the fact that there was actually someone in Hogsmeade that Harry hated more than her at this point. That was, of course, assuming that Skeeter made up the entire article about him. She was convinced that Harry would never agree to that type of interview.

Susan nodded towards a corner table that they could sit at. They sat together for a few minutes contemplating the First Task when Ernie finally arrived. "Hello Ladies. Care for a round of butterbeers?"

As the girls watched him approach the bar, Rita was dragging Bozo out the door. "Probably off to ruin someone else's life," commented Susan. Hannah was suddenly glad that Harry wasn't in Hogsmeade. He must have known that Skeeter might have hassled him here.

When Ernie returned with three butterbeers, Hannah began to lay out her duplicate cards that she was willing to trade. So far, the only ones she didn't own were Wilfred Elphick, Xavier Rastrick, and Herpo the Foul. Herpo happened to be the first creator of a Basilisk. Thinking of this immediately brought her thoughts back to Harry. Back to that crazy second year where Harry was once again an outcast before he supposedly defeated a Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets. Hannah had to let out an exasperated sigh before she noticed Ernie was actually proposing a trade.

"So would you take a Gondoline Oliphant and a Dzou Yen for your Cornelious Agrippa?" questioned Ernie. He was holding out the two proposed cards in his hand.

Hannah thought about it for a moment, "Sure. The Dzou Yen card is pretty rare and I already have three Agrippas." Ernie smiled broadly at his acquisition.

From over Ernie's shoulder, Hannah could see Hermione and Neville walk in the door. Hermione pointed out a table two seats from the current Hufflepuff location. As Neville sat down, Hermione made her way to the bar to grab some butterbeers. The thing that was curious to Hannah though, was that she appeared to be carrying three bottles in her hands. When Hermione reached Neville's table, she handed one to him and opened the other for herself. She could have sworn that she had three bottles instead of two. The situation seemed odd to Hannah, but she merely passed it off as her own imagining.

Hannah completely blocked out Ernie talking and she began to watch Hermione. The bushy-haired girl seemed to be looking at a notebook in front of her while Neville was trying to have a conversation. Hermione didn't even seem to be talking, but Neville was speaking although he was having a two-way conversation. Once again, odd.

Before she could question the weirdness of the situation, her view was blocked out by Professor Moody and Hagrid's enormous body. The two professors seemed to be stopping by to have a few friendly words. Everyone around Hogwarts knew that Harry, Hermione, and Ron had a friendly relationship with Hagrid. Hannah couldn't really understand why Professor Moody was hanging around with him though.

As the two professors left the bar, she was once again pulled out of her thoughts by Ernie. "How come you guys aren't wearing your Support Cedric badges?" He had finally asked the question Hannah had been dreading since breakfast.

"For the exact opposite reason of why you have yours on," answered Susan. She was referring to the badge on Ernie's chest that was currently flashing _POTTER STINKS_.

Hannah took over from there, "We believe Harry didn't put his name in the Goblet. He has been made a pariah within the school because of our house's heartless accusations. Harry is too sweet to be treated like that and I for one refuse to be apart of his harassment." Susan smiled support of her best friend.

Ernie raised his eyebrow at the sweet part, but quickly regained his composure, "That may be so, but don't you care about supporting Cedric? Hufflepuff's always stick together. He needs our support more than anyone else."

Hannah quickly thought up the best way to end the conflict before it escalated. Hannah may be hesitant to sort things out with Harry, but she knew that now was as good a time as any to start progressing towards earning respect for herself. She settled on going on the offensive. "You may be okay with verbally attacking one of our classmates but I am not! The House of Hufflepuff may be the house of loyalty and dedication, but that does not mean I have to be influenced by blindly following my peers in what they perceive as 'House Loyalty'," Ernie seemed to want to interrupt but, Hannah cut him off, "I WILL, however, exercise my right to be dedicated to my own beliefs. If those beliefs happen to to be supporting Harry in the hope that I can help him overcome this situation, than so be it! Goodbye Ernie!"

Hannah stormed out of the Three Broomsticks with Susan hot on her tail. Her face was still slightly flushed with anger, but she seemed to cool down once she saw the surprised look on Susan's face. Her best friend was staring at her with wide eyes that had traces of some unknown emotion. Admiration? The two girls slowed to a brisk walk.

"Hannah, what made you say that?" questioned Susan. Hannah merely bit her lip in response. "That was amazing! I'm so proud of you! You may be worthy of dating a Lion after all." Her poke at Hannah's no longer secret crush seemed to diffuse some of the tension.

"Sue, that was just my emotion overflowing. I'm sick of being a part of a crowd. I finally realized that in order for Harry to get to know the true me, I need to be able to stand up for what's right," spoke Hannah with conviction. "Harry deserves that much," she whispered to herself.

Susan smiled happily as Hannah seemed to finally let out her emotions. They linked arms in silent support before walking down the road towards the center of Hogsmeade. After all, there was still an entire afternoon out of the castle to enjoy.

**Another one done and another opportunity for my awesome readers to shown their opinions so far. Recognition and a chance to offer up improvements. Sounds like a sweet deal to me.**

**-BB**


	4. Starting Over

**Thanks to all reviewers: mwinter1, highlander348, sableye, HP-DG-SB, HolyDragoon, Penny is wise, Caroline Elizabeth Salvatore, IlikeComps, knightmare1986, and Peeves' best friend. Keep em coming! Hopefully you guys start to witness the effect your insight is having on the story!**

**Chapter 4: Starting Over**

"He won't be here for a while Hannah."

Hannah awoke from her daze with a confused look. She was staring at the Gryffindor table, once again waiting for Harry to come to breakfast. Susan was probably getting worried that Hannah was becoming a stalker. The person who was talking to her was what surprised her the most. Hermione Granger had just plopped down across from her like it was something she did everyday.

"Oh hello Hermione," welcomed Hannah. "What are you talking about?"

Hermione had a small smile on her face, "I know you're waiting for Harry so you can talk to him. After you spoke with me yesterday, I got him to talk about what happened between you two." Hannah paled considerably at her words. "Don't worry too much Hannah. It's obvious to me that it was all a misunderstanding."

Susan decided to speak up, "Finally! Now someone else can convince her she's blowing this out of proportion. I can only do so much." She spoke the last bit with an exasperating tone that Hannah responded to with a swat to the arm. Susan merely stuck her tongue out in defiance.

"All I need is an opportunity to apologize. He needs to understand that I've always wanted become friends with him." At Hannah's words, Susan grinned like a Cheshire cat while Hermione raised an eyebrow. "I've just been a little scared to act on it," she finished with a slight blush.

"Well, Hannah, if that's all you wanted to do," commented a smirking Hermione, "He just so happens to be down by the lake right now with Neville. To prepare for the tasks, he's trying to perfect as many spells he think will be useful. If I know Harry though, he won't be the one to initiate a conversation. You're going to have to be the go-getter in this relationship"

Hannah chose to not acknowledge Hermione's knowing tone and instead stood up from the bench. "I forgot Neville mentioned they'd be doing that. I'll see you guys later." She then walked away with a quick wave. She wondered what Hermione inferred about their so called future 'relationship'. Could she know that Hannah wanted more than friendship from Harry?

As she got father away, Hannah could distinctly hear Hermione's 'hmm' and Susan giggling. Not to be distracted, she continued her way towards the entrance. She could begin to feel the chilly breeze of the November air circulating through the castle. Walking through the large doors, Hannah had to squint momentarily from the Sun getting in her eyes. From the top of the hill, she could see flashed of multicolored light down by the water.

Upon closer inspection, she recognized Neville's slightly pudgy form and the crazy ebony hair that could only be atop Harry's head. She decided to watch from a distance for a bit, so she sat down on a rock located about one hundred feet away. Harry seemed to be focusing on dodging and shielding while Neville tried to hex him with an assortment of jinxes. The years of quidditch training seemed to have kept Harry in peak form because he was able to dodge more than half of the spells shot at him. His instincts were sharp and accurate, although, it was hard to tell if it was merely that or Neville's poor aim.

All of a sudden, Harry blocked a stupefy and began his attack in quick motion. "_Terra tenere!" _Hannah gasped as the greenish-brown streak hit the ground in front of Neville and the earth around him grabbed his feet. When he noticed his feet caught by the ground, Neville tried to unshackle himself quickly. But, with his concentration lost, Harry continued the attack by shouting "_Torpet scindendum_!" Harry's wand emitted_ two_ streaks of white light towards Neville. As the twin lights hit both of Nevilles shoulders at the same time, his arms ceased to function. Both sides of his arms slumped limply while his wand fell into the grass harmlessly. Harry finally called out "_Accio wand_" but nothing happened. Neville's wand barely twitched on the ground.

Harry merely shrugged his shoulders before walking over to Neville, who had seemingly lost his balance and was now on his backside with his feet still anchored. Hannah could hear them talking and laughing jovially, so she chose this moment to approach the two Gryffindors.

"Hi Harry, Hi Neville!"

"Hey Hannah. What brings you down here?" questioned Neville. He was currently still on the ground looking back at her approaching form with an inverted gaze. His casual inquiry shocked Hannah a bit. Hanging out with Harry seemed to be giving him better social skills.

Hannah rubbed her shoulder absentmindedly, "I was wondering if I could have a word with Harry?"

"Just a moment," spoke Harry neutrally. He then canceled the spell locking Neville's feet and cast an _ennerverate_ on his useless shoulders. Neville proceeded to get up while trying to regain full use of his limbs. Harry spoke to Nevillle, "Don't worry about the numbness, it'll go away in a minute. Thanks for training with me today Nev."

"Are you kidding? I've already learned so much from you. You're a great friend Harry," answered an honest Neville. Noticing that Hannah and Harry were staring at each other, he started to walk away towards the castle. "Bye guys!"

Hannah tried to read Harry's expression. He almost seemed uncomfortable with her presence and that saddened her somewhat. His eyes hadn't wandered an inch from her own and she decided to speak up, "I'm sorry Harry. I never meant to hurt you. It was just some fluke that Susan tapped my badge." She then began to ramble, "The house was trying to show a unified front for Cedric and someone brought in those stupid badges. The older students were making us wear..."

"Hannah!" She was cut off by Harry speaking. His eyes looked caring and full of emotion. "I realize that now. After talking it over with Hermione, I realized that it was just a big misunderstanding. I was just sulking more than usual that day, so I didn't notice or care. I really did want to fly with you." He spoke the last part softly, but Hannah heard every word. Her elation was cut off by her desire to get all her feelings into the open.

"But that just isn't it!" pleaded Hannah. "I've been avoiding you ever since your name came out of that stupid goblet. The whole school was turning against you and I just sat back and watched. The time you needed support the most, I wasn't helping at all." Tears began to form in her eyes, but she tried to blink them away. "I believed you from the start, but I was too scared to even defend you from my supposed friends!" She paused for a second to let it sink in. She then continued in a more quiet tone, "I just wanted you to know how sorry I was for treating you like that. I understand if you need time to forgive me." She then turned away with the intention of walking back. She had apologized to Harry and now it was up to him to make the next move.

Her strides were cut off by Harry grabbing her arm softly. Hannah spun around to meet his emerald eyes once more. "Hannah, please hear me out." The way he spoke her name with such compassion made her knees feel like jelly. She couldn't look away even if she tried. "I heard what you said about me to Ernie in the Three Broomsticks. One moment of weakness over such a stupid matter doesn't concern me. I understand now that you regretted acting along with your housemates. It took great courage to admit your faults and confront Ernie just for my sake. I propose we start over. Hi, my name is Harry James Potter. I enjoy flying , my favorite subject is Defense Against the Dark Arts, and my favorite food is treacle tart." He finished his facts by sticking out his hand in greeting.

Hannah laughed at his quirky comments before shaking his hand and answering him, "Hannah Eliza Abbott. I also enjoy flying, but only for fun. My favorite subjects and food have to be Herbology and Chocolate Frogs. I am an avid collector of the cards. I do have a question for you quick."

"Anything you want to ask, I'll try to answer."

Hannah tapped her chin in thought, "How could you have heard what I said to Ernie in the Three Broomsticks? Hermione and Neville probably told you. Right?"

"Er, right," he answered uncomfortably. "They mentioned it when they say me in the common room."

Hannah could tell he might not be truthful, but however he heard it didn't matter. "Okay."

"Well Miss Abbott, what ever shall we do as our first act as friends?" he questioned humorously.

"You can start off by telling me what you've been working on down here with Neville. That was some pretty impressive spell work you showed. Any chance for some tutoring?" Hannah questioned innocently.

Harry laughed and rolled his eyes. "Those spells were a few things I picked up through reading various texts the past few days. _Terra tenere_ is a spell to control the earth beneath someones feet to throw them off balance. The trick is to get the distance correctly so it strike right at their feet. The second spell was _torpet_, it's a jinx that will hit a pressure point and cause the appendage to go numb for a bit."

"But what made your spell shoot out twice? Is that how the spell normally behaves?"

"Aha, but that's where I brought out one of my new tricks. One book I read mentioned the ability to spell split. The incantation is _scindendum_. You can add it on to some spells in order to have to attacks instead of one. The problem is that most wizards lack the focus to control the spell. It took twice as much power and much more focus just to get that jinx to react equally strong for both sides. If your focus wanes for even a second, the resulting split will be useless on both attacks." Harry spoke all of this in a calm manner.

Hannah was slightly shocked at his new-found preparation and knowledge. Harry must be very powerful in order to do something like that. "You speak as though being able to do this is critical. Are you expecting to be attacked by multiple people?"

"Yes," he muttered softly. He was looking at his shoes, so he didn't notice Hannah's eyes widen. "There's always someone after me. The Boy-Who-Lived will always have a target on his back. I don't like having to prepare for this kind of thing, but I feel it will be essential to master if I hope to survive."

Hannah wasn't about to let the matter drop, but considering the had finally become 'friends', she could wait. To lighten the mood a bit, Hannah decided to joke around, "So after doing all of that hard spellwork, you couldn't do a simple _accio_ charm?"

Harry laughed at her jibe and flashed her a smile. "Yeah, that charms been giving me trouble ever since Flitwick assigned it. Don't know what my problem is."

"Well, Mr. Potter," admonished Hannah in a voice that was eerily close to McGonnagal's, "I would hope you aren't blaming your failure on Hogwart's gifted faculty." They both stared at each other in silence before finally breaking down into laughter. Once they caught their breath, Hannah continued, "I would love to get a chance to tutor you Harry. I didn't have any trouble with that charm in class. Maybe I can finally make up for my actions."

"Alright, you got yourself a deal Hannah. Any help offered that might be useful to me through these tasks is welcomed. Especially since I'm facing a bloody dragon." He muttered the last bit, but Hannah wasn't fooled for a second.

"What was that?" screeched Hannah. "Did I just hear you say dragons? That's the First Task!"

Harry ran a hand through his hair anxiously, messing it up even further than usual. "Yeah, I actually found out last night. They're going to have a dragon for each of us. We'll have to take something that it is guarding."

She merely stared at him incredulously. "How can they let you do something so dangerous? Please tell me you at least have a strategy?"

"Umm, well I tried doing some research on dragons last night. It turns out that dragons are imperious to nearly all forms of magic and their fire is pretty hot." He added that last part jokingly, but Hannah was not amused. "If it makes you feel any better, we may have found a way to possibly punch trough the scales."

This comment caught Hannah's attention. He transfigured a small pebble into a much larger boulder before turning to her and saying, "Watch how a normal _reducto_ works. _Reducto_!" His wand shot a yellow spell towards the large rock. As it hit, a fair portion of it broke off and crumbled from the force. "Now, witness what happens when I give it a bit of kick. _Potentia focus_" spoke Harry. His wand was parallel to the ground at his chest and it began to glow with power. Harry seemed to take calming breaths as his hair began to stick up with static energy. "_Reducto_!" he shouted once more at the boulder. With a jab of his wand, the yellow spell seemed to obliterate the once mighty rock into gravel.

Hannah stood there motionless as she saw Harry gasping for air. She was surprised that a mere fourteen year old could wield such power. She was actually speechless.

"We found that even with that much force," Harry spoke between gasps, "It probably won't break though the toughened scales. Plus it takes a lot of energy and a bit of time to charge effectively. Not the best scenario when facing a fire breathing dragon. If we were to add some more force to the shot while being able to move, it could work. Assuming that I get that far with the dragon, we are hoping that a well placed stunner will daze it in time to grab whatever it's guarding."

Hannah nodded her head in agreement. Everything that he said seemed to be well thought out, even if the plan relied on being overly optimistic. "I take it you don't have many options when defending yourself?" At his confirmation nod, she continued, "I may be able to help you combat the flames. There's a spell my dad taught me when I was younger that could help." Hannah was briefly saddened as her thoughts drifted to her father. It was little over a year ago that her father passed away. She didn't want to burden Harry by bringing up what happened. Thankfully, he took notice of her change in mood, but chose not to ask any questions just yet. "The incantation is _flectere flammis_. It literally means to 'bend the flames' away from harming you. I only have a basic knowledge of the principles."

"Do you think you'd be able to show it to me after classes today?" he questioned hesitantly.

"Of course Harry. You may not get the chance to perfect it, but just knowing that I'm doing my best to help you is good enough for me."

"Thanks," he answered. He stood there for a minute while contemplating saying something. "I would really appreciate it if you could warn Cedric about the dragons as well. I'm sure the other champions know, so it's only fair that he's on equal ground. You don't even have to say who told you, anybody in my position would do the same thing," stated Harry.

Hannah's heart warmed as she listened to Harry speak. Here he was, forced into a tournament unwillingly, and now he's actively trying to aid his competitor because he believed it was morally wrong to not act. Even after being harassed nonstop for weeks, Harry was showing that he was capable of showing compassion even without receiving any in return. She could only become more attracted to the chivalrous lion with each passing moment. Hannah was now emboldened with the fact that she chose correctly by standing by Harry.

He was true embodiment of a true champion.

**How did you like the apology? Reviews are a great way for me to meet your needs as readers. Any and all comments are taken in high regard. Thanks in advance!**

**-BB**


	5. Loyalty

**Annnnd we're back! Big break from the story, but I'm refreshed and ready to crank out some fresh material. Thanks for sticking with the story and the continuous subscriptions/reviews. You guys are the reason I decided to write in the first place.**

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**Chapter 5: Loyalty**

Hannah could hardly believe what was happening right now. She was actually sitting at the Gryffindor table for lunch, sitting next to Harry Potter. She had been dreaming of being in this position for about a year, but it never seemed within reach. So much had changed in just a few hours. Just this morning, Hannah was worried if Harry would forgive her. Now she was joking along with a group that consisted of both lions and badgers. Susan had squeezed in between Neville and Hermione to bring the group's total to five.

Currently, they were revealing their funniest moments of accidental magic. The five students were acting as if they had been friends for months, not just hours.

Susan was the one currently reminiscing. "I remember one time Auntie was hosting one of her co-workers over for lunch at our house once when I was six. The woman had the most obnoxious laugh I had ever heard. All I can remember is wanting her to stop laughing and out of nowhere, a pitcher of water spilled over her head. I was so worried that I was in trouble, but Aunt Amelia just laughed and pulled me out of the room. She was actually glad that I silenced her annoying friend." Everyone laughed at her luck.

"My first was when my parents had locked the study room for the night when I was five. I was feeling particularly stubborn that day, so I snuck out of my room to get to the books. Somehow, when I reached the door, the handle unlocked and I was able to get in," confided Hermione. "I just wanted to finish my chapter in one of the books. The next morning, my parents were about to call in a search party to find me after I wasn't seen in my room. The way they tell the story now, I was curled up in my dad's chair asleep holding the book like a teddy bear." She finished her tale with a flush.

The group laughed as Harry spoke up, "Only you Hermione, would have enough will to magic your way into a room to get to a book at five years old."

"Oh shut up!" scolded Hermione as she punched his shoulder across the table. "What's your embarrassing story! You seem to be having a good time laughing at ours."

Harry looked down in shame. "I don't really have any good-natured stories. Most of mine came from either fear or anger." He finished the statement by trailing off into silence.

Hermione's mouth was shaped in an expression of 'oh'. She immediately nodded in understanding and sympathy. The silence that permeated was uncomfortable enough for everyone to get back to eating. Hannah was confused at his statement and Hermione's quick acceptance. She was wondering what secrets Harry was holding. Every time she peeled back a layer of understanding of Harry, she was confronted with more questions.

Hannah was slowly cutting her chicken when she decided to spare a glance sideways at Harry through her cascading hair. He appeared to be mixing up his food absentmindedly with his fork. His expression was unreadable to her. She vowed right then to get Harry to open up and reveal his secrets to her *. The best way for her to help him was to have a basic understanding of what he has gone through. All of the signs so far pointed towards an unhappy home life and that confused her somewhat. Harry was such a sweet boy. It was difficult to imagine how he could turn out so nice from a less than ideal upbringing.

"Do you want to talk about it Harry?" questioned Hannah in a whisper as she reached over to touch his hand. Sensing her touch, Harry finally looked at her, his emerald eyes smoldering with emotion. The warmth from their hands was about the same temperature as Hannah's face flushed from embarrassment. The heat between their hands was nice to Hannah, it felt right.

"Catch that, did you?" At her nod, Harry continued, "I'm not really used to talking about this kind of thing. Maybe once we get to know each other better I'll let you get inside the head of the fabled Boy-Who-Cheated or whatever it is they call me now."

At hearing his words, Hannah took her hand from his and gave him a not so gentle whack to the back of his head. Anger permeated her words as she scolded him, "Don't talk about yourself like that Harry! You've done nothing wrong and anyone who thinks differently can bugger off!"

Hannah was momentarily caught off guard at the sight of Harry bent over from the force of her blow. His head was bobbing slightly with his effort to control his laughter. Hannah was confused at his reaction until he finally once again met her gaze, this time only inches from her face. "Thank you for that Hannah," he said still chuckling, "Sometimes it's just too easy to catch up in my own misery, although things seem to be looking up."

They continued to stare at each other until Harry broke the peaceful silence, "I understand the concern, but was the language really necessary my dear Hannah?" He sent her a wink at her indignant look resulting from his comment.

The remaining friends at the table looked on with amused expressions towards their good friends bickering playfully. Before Hannah could retort, Harry was the one to initiate contact by touching her hand in the same way Hannah did before she assaulted him. "So Professor Abbott, say we meet up around four o'clock for those private lessons? I have a few things to get done in the meantime." He tacked on a lop-sided smile to completely fog Hannah's mind.

"Uh, sure," responded Hannah intelligently. Her head was still in the clouds with the touching and close proximity. She was brought out of her thoughts as Harry got up from the table and began walking towards the door. "Don't be tardy Mr. Potter!" she called after him.

As Hannah turned back towards her food, she had a content smile on her face.

"Oh, you got it bad," commented a smug Susan.

* * *

><p><p>

"Cedric! Hey, Cedric, wait up!" yelled Hannah. She had spotted the Hufflepuff champion just before he had stepped into the common room.

Cedric pulled up and waited off to the side. "Hi Hannah! How's your day going?" If he noticed her lack of badge, he didn't comment on it.

Hannah gave him a soft smile and answered, "Much better now that I got a few things sorted out. Thanks."

"Is there something that you wanted Hannah? I'm about to get in some more preparation for the first task."

"Actually, I have some information that can actually help you with that." With this comment, Cedric's gaze hardened and he moved closer to hear every word. Hannah continued in a whisper, "I have information from a reliable source on what the first task entails." Cedric was trying to interrupt to keep her from spilling the info, but Hannah just spit it out, "Dragons. Before you tell me off for exposing the task to you, my source has determined that the rest of the champions already know."

"..." Cedric was speechless, just standing there with a vacant expression on his face. After false starting a few times, he finally croaked out, "Why are you telling me this? I shouldn't have a clue to what I'm facing. The whole point is to test our bravery."

"Yeah ,well, do you want to be honorable or in the hospital wing?" fired back Hannah. She wasn't going to back down on this issue.

Cedric wore a defeated expression as he nodded his head. "Thanks for the information. If everyone knows then it's alright for me to know as well." At those words, he spoke the password and entered the common room.

Hannah was quick to follow him through the doorway and seek out Susan in their usual corner. Her view of her smiling best friend was cut off by the appearance of three sets of Hufflepuff robes. When she noted the faces, she recognized Zacharias flanked by Ernie and Justin. The only one who didn't look smug was Justin. He looked downright uncomfortable.

"So, Hannah," started Zacharias, "Ernie here has been sharing with us some interesting information." The informant in question merely nodded his head in agreement before waiting to see Hannah's reaction.

"And what in the name of Merlin would that information be Mr. Mystery?" retorted Hannah. By this time, the rest of the common room was beginning to tune in.

"That you have been consorting with Potter! First, you refuse to wear your 'Support Cedric' badge," started Ernie. At this revelation, a majority of the Hufflepuff's began to scowl at Hannah. "Second, you stand up for him by arguing with me in the middle of the Three Broomsticks. And Finally, I'm sure most of us noticed, you we're actually eating at the Gryffindor table with him and his crew!"

There were dark mutterings around the room after Ernie finished his rant. Although Hannah was simmering with anger, she was also quite glad that Ernie hadn't mentioned that Susan was by her side for those events. She understood that Susan would support her through anything, but that didn't mean they both had to be pariahs within Hufflepuff.

Hannah was attempting to breathe calmly and control her emotions, but the second she gazed upon Ernie and Zacharias' grins, she lost it. "Ernie I already clarified my position with you in the Three Broomsticks. Since you couldn't let the matter drop, I'll just set this straight one final time. Yes, I'm defending Harry! And why shouldn't I? He hasn't done anything wrong! All of your are so quick to point at him and blame him for everything, yet no one has actually spoken with him."

She gave a quick scan through the crowd to gauge their reactions and she was somewhat disappointed. Only a few of the gathered students actually had the decency to look ashamed. "This so-called 'hard-working' house has definitely lived up to it's reputation on that front. Hufflepuff's have been doing everything within their power to make Harry's life hell. In case you haven't noticed, he's already been entered unwillingly into a tournament that will have him competing for his life. He hardly needs your 'help' in that regard!"

Zacharias chose that moment to open his mouth, "He dug his own grave Hannah. We're doing our best to support Cedric, in whatever form that may take. It's about time you helped us out." There were nods of agreement from around the room.

"Ugh!" grunted Hannah in frustration. "What kind of fantasy world are you living in? This is a fourteen year old boy you are talking about. What gives you the right to be his judge in this case? What about you Cedric? Surely you can't approve of all this commotion in your name?" She had spun around towards Cedric, who was sitting with a few of his friends.

The blank look on Cedric's face was enough to break Hannah's heart. The normally charismatic Seeker was going to stand by and watch his housemates try and tear Harry apart. Hannah was tearing up when she started to speak after the silence, "Harry is one of the bravest and most compassionate person I have ever met. He is my friend and I will do my best to help him not only survive this tournament, but to win." At her final words, she felt her knees give way until she was caught by a pair of arms. Looking up, she noticed that Susan had made her way over during her speech to show her support.

"C'mon Hannah, let's get you some fresh air," whispered Susan. Slowly, Hannah was able to stand with every eye in the house looking at her with mixed expressions.

Once they reached the door, Hannah turned slightly and yelled back, "Cedric!" When he turned his head to address her, she spoke as collected as possible, "Harry was the one who wanted you warned." The two best friends walked out without seeing the seventh year pale at her words.

* * *

><p><p>

"Do you want to talk about it?" questioned Susan softly. The two friends were currently sitting on their favorite rock overlooking the lake. The spot wasn't too far from the spot Hannah would be meeting Harry within the hour.

Hannah sniffled and wiped away one last tear before answering, "How could they all continue to act like that? For a moment there I thought we were in the Slytherin common room. Those weren't the housemates I remember over the years."

"Some people just can't listen to reason when they are blinded by their own sense of self righteousness," soothed Susan. "I'm proud of you for fighting for your beliefs. Even if it wasn't Harry under fire, I believe you still would have done it the same. Plus Zacharias is just being his usual pompous ass."

Hannah giggled at Susan's remark. "Sue, can you do something for me?" At her affirmative nod, Hannah continued, "Can you transfigure a target so I can blow off some steam?"

Susan had a feral grin on her face as she transfigured a small rock into a life-size wooden dummy that had a striking resemblance to Zacharias.

After a moment of pause, Hannah put on a face of determination and spoke the incantation for the first time, "_potentia focus_." She could feel her reserves building up as her magic began to look for an outlet. She infused all of her emotions into that moment when she yelled out, "_Incendio!_"

Her aim was straight and true as they watched the supercharged flames incinerate the stationary 'Zacharias'. When the flames died down, Hannah wobbled and landed right on her butt. Her thoughts were hazy as she tried to catch her breath from the exertion.

"Damn," deadpanned Susan.

A voice from behind them spoke up, "You know when you offered to help teach me to combat flames, I thought we might start a bit smaller."

Hannah turned to see a smiling Harry, but his smile vanished when he saw the sad look in her eyes. His demeanor changed instantly and he immediately looked towards Susan with a questioning look.

"There was a bit of a confrontation in the common room concerning her allegiance to the house. Her new association with you has brought a bit of heat down on her," supplied Susan.

Harry didn't say anything, but rushed over to Hannah's position on the ground and pulled her up. As soon as she stood, Harry embraced her in a warm hug, pouring out all of his thanks and support he could muster. "Thank you Hannah. I'm sorry you've been put into this situation just for being friends. If anyone can understand what you're going through, it would be me," whispered Harry into her ear.

Hannah removed her head from his shoulder and looked him the eyes with a fierce gaze. "I promised to help you Harry and it's going to take more than that to get rid of me. I vowed to them that you were going to win, so don't let me down Mr. Potter."

Harry's eyes twinkled as he returned her gaze, "Never."

**And there's chapter 5! Hope you liked it! Everyone have a great Father's Day if you actually celebrate it and send in those reviews!**

***highlander348- that was for you haha**

**-BB**


	6. Sparking an Idea

**Back again and it didn't take over a month. Anyone like the awesome cover up top? Haha**

**Thanks to all my reviewers: anthony37, HolyDragoon, HP-DG-SB-RR-HA-TD-LL-KB-AJ-NT, kindleflame5, the dork knight, southern-reader, Dbarr74, and HPFan2144.**

**Chapter 6: Spark an Idea**

"Alright, so what have I already revealed to you about this technique that I want to teach you?" questioned Hannah as she was facing Harry, standing a few feet away.

"You only mentioned that there was a way to combat the flames," answered Harry. He paused for a second as if battling a question inside. When he finally spoke, Hannah was caught completely unaware. "You also mentioned that your father taught you the basic principles. Is the situation touchy for you?"

Hannah's silence seemed to be enough confirmation for him. Instead of pushing for more information, he seemed content to wait for her to focus up. "Sorry, Harry. It's just that my dad died just over a year ago. He was always there for me and it's been difficult to accept." At seeing Harry start to interrupt, Hannah cut him off, "Don't you dare tell me I don't have to teach you this! I want to honor him by transferring the knowledge to you."

Harry gave a sheepish nod for her to continue. It appeared that Harry was finally understanding that Hannah couldn't be stopped once she set her mind on something.

"Now, as I said before, this technique can be used to 'bend' the flames away from harming you. The incantation is _flectere flammis _and is considered master level spell work. First thing you should understand Harry, is that I have only been able to bend sparks." At seeing him nod in confirmation, she continued, "Now I want you to shoot some at me so you can get a quick lesson on a practical level before theory."

Harry got ready and waited for Hannah to give him permission. Once she had a staggered stance with her left side forward, she gave him a thumbs up.

"_Perriculum_," shouted Harry, aiming directly for her.

Hannah concentrated closely as the red spark approached quickly. "_Flectere flammis_," she proclaimed. Her wand seemed to catch the small flame in it's gravity as the red light corkscrewed down the wand, until suddenly, she pivoted on her front left foot and threw out her wand arm into the air. The red light danced back up the wand until it shot off and straight into the sky. Both teens watched with pride as the resulting red explosion echoed across the grounds.

"That was great Hannah!" exclaimed Harry as he hurried over towards her.

Hannah blushed under his praise. "Thanks Harry. Now that you've seen how it works, it's time to dissect and replicate it with you. What was the first thing you noticed in what I did Harry?"

"Well, you turned your body opposite your wand arm in a staggered stance."

"Correct. Standing like that will make it easier to send the flame in whichever direction you choose. Keep going with your observations."

"The flame seemed to spiral down your wand until it reached the handle. From that point, you shifted your weight while pivoting to send it up in a brilliant display of spell work." By the time he finished his observation, Hannah was once again blushing.

"Thank you for that and I must compliment you on your eye for detail. What you need to understand is that you must be able to sense the 'life' of the fire. Fire has a certain aspect of it that seems alive and full of energy. You aren't trying to merely catch the flame, you are attempting to guide its path in a new direction. Once the flame creeps up your wand, you can actually feel the energy building and looking for an outlet. The energy will reach critical mass towards the handle, which is why I sent it away once it reached that point. Failing to do so will have explosive results. Trust me, it's better to release early than late."

Harry nodded and Hannah could see the pure determination in his green eyes. "Maybe you could walk through the steps with me? Just this once," he questioned.

Hannah blinked in surprise before answering shakily, "Yeah, sure. Just this once." She slowly walked behind him and grabbed his hands as if she were steering a mannequin. A mannequin that just so happened to take the form of her long time crush. His hands felt warm against hers and she could tell that hers were sweating at their close proximity. Her breathing hitched as she spoke in his ear, "First you stagger, followed by the drawback and then you piv-"

Her instructions were cut off as they both tried to turn while connected at the hands. The awkward motion threw both of them off-balance and onto the ground. Harry was on his back, looking straight into her eyes with a smile on his face. Both teens had red faces from embarrassment but neither seemed keen on moving just yet. "Pivot?" questioned Harry jokingly.

They both laughed and started to get up rather awkwardly. Hannah pushed him back down with a giggle. "Ladies first mister."

Harry smacked his head in mock indignation. "Where are my manners? Allow me to make up for it by allowing you to shooting sparks at me," he bargained while getting up. He then proceeded to walk ten paces away to wait for Hannah.

Hannah sighed as she realized play time was over. Learning this could be the difference maker for Harry's survival. "_Perriculum_!"

"_Flectere flammis_!" commanded Harry. Hannah watched, slightly disappointed as the spark missed his wand and exploded ten feet behind him. "What do you think went wrong?"

She concentrated a second before answering, "You can't tr to force it into obeying your will. Your magic is only a focal point with you being the guide. This spell is all about having a feel for the energy supplied by the flame. Understanding the power is the only way to harnessing it. Again!" Hannah fired off another spark towards him.

Harry was able to connect with the spark, but he released it early and the red streak was thrown haphazardly off in a random direction.

"Better,. Try again!"

This time was better because he was able to send it back directly back towards her. The downside though was that he once again released too soon, causing the flame to actually die out from lack of transferred energy.

"Feel the energy build and shift when it hits critical." At his confirmation, she sent a fourth shot towards him. She was rewarded wit a clean catch and focus period, but she cried in horror as the spark blew up right next to his hand.

"Agh!" cried Harry in pain. He dropped to the ground clutching his hand as Hannah rushed over.

"I'm so sorry Harry! We need to get you to the hospital wing right now." She could his hand had some burns and a bit of blood trickling down his hand.

"I've had worse. I need to get this down before Tuesday's task." At seeing Hannah's worried face, he reconsidered and stood up. "Fine we'll get this checked out. We may need to find a plan B for strategy though. This is a lot harder than I thought."

They began to make their way up towards the castle. Every few seconds, Hannah would sneak a glance at Harry's hand, hoping that she hadn't crippled his chances before the tournament even started. As they passed a group of fifth year Hufflepuffs, Hannah put her head down and tried to ignore them. What surprised her though was that Harry took his good arm and wrapped it around her shoulder in a show of support. The glare he sent their way also pleased Hannah.

"You know, we may just have to do something about that," muttered Harry ominously.

Before Hannah could respond, Harry opened the Hospital Wing doors to see Madam Pomfrey hustling about the room. She appeared to be quick busy helping a few students. They quietly walked over to an empty bed and sat down waiting to be treated.

Madam Pomfrey noticed them and called out over her shoulder shouting, "What now Mr. Potter? I see you in here far too often!"

He sent her a smile and answered, "Aww c'mon Poppy, you know you've missed my presence. I'm afraid to say that I've got a nice burn on my hand today."

She harrumphed in response before walking over to their bed and giving Hannah a jar of ointment. "Here Miss Abbott. Apply this to his hand softly and the burn should be healed by tomorrow afternoon. Now if you'll excuse me, I am quite busy right now." And with those words, she walked away muttering about 'Potter men'.

Hannah began to unscrew the lid to the jar and started apologizing once more, "I'm sorry I gave you this stupid idea Harry. I knew it was very difficult to get and here I was thinking that you would be able to master it in just two days time."

She had began to apply the ointment softly and Harry let out a moan of pleasure. The medication was already helping cool his hand. "I already told you Hannah, there is no way this is your fault. You had an idea and we gave it a shot, that's all there is to it." She continued to rub on the medicine in silence until he spoke up once more, "Hannah, how did your father die? You don't have to answer right now, I was just curious. He must have been a good man to have raised a such a wonderful daughter."

Hannah's eyes began to tear momentarily, but she got strength by looking into Harry's eyes and seeing genuine concern for her. She wanted to build up trust between each other and maybe spilling some history would open Harry up to revealing more about his past.

"My father was killed thirty three days before school started last year," she began softly. "He worked as a delegate for the Ministry of Magic. His job was to act as a mediator between the Ministry and various covens of veela around Europe. As you can imagine, tempers could flare up during talks and he needed necessary protection from the potent veela fire. I had often inquired about his work, so he tried to teach me the basics of the _flectere_ spell."

Hannah stopped a moment to pause so Harry asked a question. "Was he killed doing his job? I can imagine it could be quite dangerous to a degree."

"No. He had often joked that if he were to die in the presence of veela, any man would be jealous of him going out like that," chuckled Hannah. Her mood then turned somber. "He was mugged and killed leaving the ministry one day after work. He died in a dark alley, alone, with no one beside him." When she finished, she had tears in her eyes, but they refused to fall as she continued rubbing Harry's hand.

"Hannah, is that why you were so willing to stand by me when my name came out? You saw a chance to help someone when they seemed alone in the world?" questioned Harry. Upon seeing her horrified expression, he added, "I know it wasn't only pity that caused you to seek me out. You're my friend Hannah. I know you had your reasons."

Hannah blushed heavily and looked down when she mumbled, "Yeah, there were a couple of reasons. Plus, you already had Hermione and Neville by your side." She hoped he didn't discover her true feelings before they had an adequate time to be friends.

"That may be true," offered Harry, "but neither of them could get me out of my funks. Hanging out with you has been great for me so far."

Madam Pomfrey walked over for a moment and inspected Harry's hand. After nodding in approval she shooed them out of the Hospital Wing. "Good job Miss Abbott, now get going and try to stay out of trouble."

When they had left the clutches of Madam Pomfrey, Hannah revealed some more information, "You know, I was in a bit of a funk that whole third year. I actually believed that the escaped convict, Sirius Black, was able to change into a flowering shrub to avoid detection." She paused a moment, then laughed at her past self, "I can't believe I told everyone that ridiculous theory."

Harry chuckled and shook his head at her admission. "You know Hannah, he is a wizard, so anything is possible." Harry's face was serious, but his eyes seemed to be laughing at an inside joke at her expense. Hannah merely shrugged the thought off and assumed she had a long way in terms of understanding the reserved fourth-year.

Since it was getting late by the time they actually left, the two decided to go straight to dinner. By the time they reached the Great Hall, dinner was already served. Their late arrival drew the attention of most of the eating students. Hannah was about to shy away, when she realized that Harry kept his head up, walking unperturbed.

Seeing as they were going to sit down with the Gryffindors again, they unfortunately had to walk past the scowling form of Ron Weasley. Hannah could hear him muttering to Dean and Seamus about Harry being a liar and a traitor.

As Hannah turned to yell at him, she felt Harry's hand slip into hers and lead her towards Susan, Neville, and Hermione. Hannah was so shocked at the gesture, she forgot about Weasley being a prat.

When they finally sat down, Hermione screeched, "Harry! What happened to your hand?"

Harry merely tilted his hand as if inspecting it for something wrong. "What are you talking about Hermione? I've always had a scorch mark on my right hand. You just haven't noticed," he stated while pointing at her with a cup of pumpkin juice.

Neville and Susan snorted as Hermione let out an indignant huff. "Laugh it up Harry, it looks as though your training didn't go as planned. Hmm?"

"Hey, Hannah did the best she could teaching me," defended Harry. "It's not her fault that I can't master something that advanced in one afternoon."

Susan decided to speak up, "So if that training isn't going well. What are you going to do to prepare now?"

"Learn the summoning charm," answered Harry nonchalantly. At seeing the disbelieving looks offered by his friends, Harry offered more of an explanation, "Trust me. I have a plan and everything. I think." He had a look of deep concentration on his face, as though he was trying to convince himself. After a moment, he just shrugged and smiled at them.

"But Harry, shouldn't you focus on something a little more powerful than a summoning charm. The other champions have seven years worth of knowledge over you!"

"Well Hermione, if you think it's such a waste of time, then I'm sure Hannah will be more than happy to teach it to me, seeing as she already offered," stated Harry. He looked over towards Hannah with a questioning smile.

Hannah smiled in return. "Of course Harry. I would love to!" Unfortunately, her comment didn't go unnoticed at the Hufflepuff table. Ernie and Justin were openly glaring at her. Hannah quickly turned away to avoid their stares. She didn't notice that Justin, once again, seemed uncomfortable in the two Hufflepuff's presence.

"You know Neville, I'm not sure I like how those boys are looking at our new friend Hannah," commented Harry idlely. "I believe we may need to teach them a lesson in manners."

Neville looked around expecting someone was standing behind him. "Are you talking to me Harry?" At his nod in the affirmative, Neville croaked out, "But I don't know the first thing about pranking anyone."

"Well it's time you got some practical experience then," answered Harry calmly as if that settled the matter then and there.

Hannah wasn't going to sit back from the action, "Hey, if you're doing this in my defense, I at least want to help out!"

Harry shook his head adamantly, "No can do Miss Abbott. We need you and Susan to have plausible deniability so they can't blame the prank directly on you."

They finished their meals chatting about homework, how much they hated Snape, and Dumbledore's abnormal choice in clothing. Overall it was a great little chat. By the time they parted ways for the night, Hannah still had no clues about what Harry was planning, but it felt great to have him in her corner.

**Hope you liked the chapter guys! Send in your prank ideas because I like involving my readers as much as possible.**

**Reviews are pretty sweet and they actually help influence the story so get them in!**

**-BB**


	7. Pranks and Preparation

**Thanks to all reviewers: southern-reader, Zoe Anderson, Dbarr74, psychoyoshi79, sirius009, Ravenmore45, darkanomoly, HolyDragoon, god of all, rb2312, and Black Wolf 101.**

**Chapter 7: Pranks and Preparation**

"So let me get this straight, Harry asked you for the password into our common room?" questioned a disbelieving Susan. The two Hufflepuffs were making their way to breakfast before class.

"Yup," answered Hannah in a cheery mood.

"And you didn't think to question him or doubt his reasons?"

Hannah thought for a moment. "Of course I had my doubts, but then I realized that Harry would never intentionally hurt someone. If he's planning on taking those gits down a peg or two, I am more than willing to help out."

There was a moment of silence before Susan broke it. "So," started Susan with a smug grin. "Only a few days and Harry's already defending you from the big bad housemates."

Hannah blushed slightly. "I think he only feels guilty that he's the cause for my treatment. Plus he really doesn't like Zacharias too much," she joked.

Susan only smiled and nodded as they walked through the doors of the Great Hall. She didn't even ask if they would be sitting with the Gryffindors again, it was a given. Both girls enjoyed the current company there much more.

Hannah's heart jumped when Harry gave her a small smile as she sat down next to him. She was a bit puzzled though when she realized that he actually seemed to be reading the Daily Prophet.

"Um Harry, you aren't actually reading the Prophet? Are you?" Hannah questioned suspiciously. She knew there wasn't a scandalous story about him in there. Those were the only occasions that he did.

Harry flipped a page nonchalantly and spoke, "No, not really. This is my inconspicuous look. How does it look?" He had wagged his eye brows in what was supposed to be a mysterious way.

"Like you've just stolen all of Malfoy's hair gel to tick him off," answered Hannah. At seeing Harry's contemplative look, she asked incredulously, "Would you actually do that?"

"Maybe," he joked. "At least I look less obvious than Neville."

Hannah followed his gaze to where Neville was sitting next to Susan. He had his chin down on the table with a text book propped up around him. She had to suppress a snort at the ridiculousness of the sight.

"You don't prank people often, do you Neville?" deadpanned Susan. The four friends laughed at Neville's discomfort. Harry and Neville both put down their 'reading material' and began to eat.

"So what did you guys actually do?"

Hermione answered for the boys, "They won't tell anyone. They think it will be funnier if we react like everyone else."

"That's because it will be," stated Harry, who was now brandishing a fork. "It should come together quite soon actually."

As soon as he finished talking, Hannah noticed that the suspected targets had just entered the hall. Ernie, Zacharias and Justin, as usual, sat a short distance from them.

Hannah sat there wondering when it was going to happen, but suddenly she saw Zacharias send her a glare. His normally blonde hair flared red, before settling into a dull red. At his change, Hannah's eyes bugged out in surprise. When she turned back to her friends, she could see them all holding back laughter.

Over at the Hufflepuff table, Zacharias didn't take too kindly to Ernie and Justin laughing at him, so he punched them both in their shoulders. When Justin, then Ernie yelled at him, their hair flashed yellow and blue respectively. As the colors dulled for a moment, they activated a moment flashing red, yellow , then blue. The three Hufflepuffs looked confused as all four tables started laughing at them. The teachers were already glaring at the Weasley twins, but they had their hands up (in quite possibly the first time) innocence.

After the teachers calmed down the students a bit, Susan spoke up, "So you changed their hair colors? That doesn't seem so bad. If you had a green one, you would have all the house colors."

Harry had an evil smirk. "Who says we don't," he teased. "Hannah could you do me a favor? Can you laugh like I just told a funny story?"

Hannah wore a puzzled look on her face and asked, "Why would I do that?"

"Just humor me."

She put on her best acting face and let out a very staged. "Haha." Most people seemed to look at her like she was nuts, but she noticed that Ron was looking in their direction with contempt on his face. Ron's hair then transformed bright green and dulled down. Out of the corner of her eye, Hannah noticed that all of the colorful heads flashed in series: red, yellow, blue, and green.

"And there's target four," interjected Neville. The hall was laughing collectively once they realized that it happened again, but to a Gryffindor this time.

Hermione had a hand over mouth. "Oh my," she said, trying unsuccessfully to stiffle her giggles. "So will their hair flash in that order all day?"

"No, anytime one of them activates the charm, it'll add on to the chain," clarified Harry.

"What causes it to activate?"

"Anger," answered Neville with a smirk.

Susan had a malicious glint in her eyes at his words. "This," she said pointing towards the victims, "Is going to be fun." Hannah and Harry shivered slightly at her words and what they implied for the rest of the day.

After watching various teachers try and revert the prank, there were a couple more instances of anger issues, furthering the color chain. On the way to Herbology, Susan managed to send off a few unnoticeable tripping jinxes at the boys, furthering the amusement of everyone. By the time the group reached Herbology, the pattern went red, yellow, blue, green, blue, red, red, green, blue, and yellow. It was quite mesmerizing to watch.

Professor Sprout was quite irritated with the four boys because they were disrupting her class. Hannah was having a difficult time trimming her plants because she kept dazing off, dreaming other absurd pranks that Harry would do for her. She also felt kind of guilty that he planned all of this out, wasting time he should be using on preparing for the First Task. Hannah turned towards Harry, only to find him looking over at her carefully. When she smiled in thanks, he grinned and got back to work.

The rest of the day went on similarly. Sometime around lunchtime, the four targets realized that anger was triggering the colors and they were able to halt it from continuing to grow.

* * *

><p><p>

After classes for the day, the five friends made their towards an abandoned classroom to help Harry learn the summoning charm for the First Task.

Neville and Susan sat off to the side to watch as Hannah and Hermione began instructing Harry. The two girls were summoning small things around the room, so Harry could get a feel for what he should try.

"Just concentrate on what you need and will it to come to you," instructed Hermione as Hannah nodded.

"Alright, here goes nothing. _Accio_!" The book that he was tried to summon twitched momentarily, but remained firm. He tried again instantly, but got much of the same result. After a few minutes of trying Hermione spoke up.

"Concentrate, Harry, concentrate. "

"What d'you think I'm trying to do?" said Harry angrily. "A great big dragon keeps

popping up in my head for some reason..."

"Not to mention the fact that Trelawney predicted that those born in July should be wary of dying a sudden, violent death," piped in Neville.

Hermione tsked. "Not helping Neville."

Susan hopped off a desk. "I have an idea." She winked at Hannah across the room before turning to Harry. "Let's see how well you work under pressure. _Fodio_!" Susan shot off a stinging hex directly at Hannah.

Harry's eyes widened in surprise before yelling out, "_Accio Hannah_!"

Hannah only had a moments notice before she was jerked away from the oncoming hex and colliding with Harry, knocking him over. For the second time in two days, Hannah was staring into his green eyes while she was on top of him. Knowing that they weren't alone, she jumped up and brushed herself off with an embarrassed blush on her face.

"What the hell Susan!" shrieked Hannah once she realized what had happened.

Susan's response was to grin and say, "It worked didn't it. All Harry needed was a little bit of incentive. He would never let any harm come to you." She said the last sentence with some emphasis on the word 'you'. Hannah found herself looking sown to hide her emotion. There was an awkward silence momentarily.

"Riiiight," commented Neville in the corner to break the silence.

"Are you going to finally tell us what you plan is to take on the dragon?" questioned Hannah. Hermione was nodding adamantly behind her.

Harry seemed to think about it for a moment before smiling. "Nope. I'm playing this one close to my chest. I know that if I told you guys, you would be scolding me and making me second guess myself." Seeing Hermione try to interrupt him, Harry continued, "And before you call me foolish, I DO have a plan B in case it fails. After all, I am trying to win this bloody tournament." He said the last statement without breaking eye contact with Hannah. Her heart warmed, knowing that he was trying to win knowing what she did in his name.

As they seemed to file out of the classroom, Harry called out, "I'll just be in here a bit more. Just want to perfect the charm for tomorrow."

Hannah chirped up, "I'll stay with you, we can play catch with each other." The others just nodded and continued out the door. "How about I give you some quick questions about yourself to train yourself to not lose focus while doing the charm?"

"Okay," replied Harry. He quickly transfigured a quill into a small ball and began waiting for Hannah. What he didn't know, was that Hannah viewed this as a great opportunity to learn more trivial things about him.

She quickly summoned the ball and asked the first question, "What's your favorite color?"

"Blue, like the sky." He summoned it successfully before she charmed it back.

"Favorite teacher?"

"Professor Lupin." Another successful summon and vice versa.

"Night owl or early bird?"

"Night owl for sure." He got it the third time in a row. Now she was going to try and shake his concentration.

"Boxers or briefs?" At her question, the ball dropped out of the air and rolled towards Harry's shocked face.

Hannah only chuckled before attempting to summon the ball back to her. However, during mid-flight, Harry answered with a straight face, "Thong" and she completely lost her concentration and let the ball bounced off her head. They both stared at each other for a moment, before breaking down and laughing until their sides hurt.

"You know Hannah, you should really work on your concentration. If you're so willing to fluster someone, you should be even more aware of retaliation," joked Harry as he walked up to her.

"I'll keep that in mind," laughed a cheerful Hannah. They walked out of the classroom with huge grins on their faces. That was enough practice for the day.

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By the time dinner came around, the five friends were chatting and watching Ernie, Justin, Zac, and Ron's hair flashing their respective colors. Since they seemed to have ceased all form of anger for the time being, their hair just flashed in a very long and complicated pattern over and over. From Hannah's count, their hair changed sixty-one times before repeating the sequence.

Susan had to satisfy her curiosity from before, "You couldn't have charmed the boys directly. The teachers would have been able to revert them. What did you charm?"

Harry grinned, then replied, "The 'Support Cedric' badges for the Hufflepuffs and Ron's 'lucky' socks. That was his excuse to never clean them." Hannah actually vomited a bit in her mouth at the statement.

"When will their hair revert back to normal?" inquired Hermione.

"Whenever someone is up for the challenge," answered Harry ominously. The girls only raised their eyebrows in response. Thankfully, they didn't have to wait long for the answer.

As dinner came to a close, the five friends watched as Luna Lovegood walked between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables silently. She stopped right next to Ron, Ernie, Zacharias, and Justin and began tapping their heads. Hannah was confused at first by what she was doing. She seemed to be tapping their heads in a specific order and as she did, their hair would turn bright for a second before dulling down again. Hannah let out an "Oh" when she realized that she tapped them exactly how the chain of brightness would occur. The boys were too shocked by her actions that they didn't even object to her absurd tapping. After about thirty seconds of silence, the four boys' heads reverted back to their natural color.

Luna seemed to be waiting for something as the boy's began celebrating their return to form. Out of nowhere a voice yelled out, "DING, DING, DING! WE HAVE A WINNER!" Luna merely smiled and began walking away towards the doors. All attention was brought back to the reverted boys, when their clothes began to disappear. Leaving them only in their boxer shorts as the hall watched them run towards the door. Ron's boxers had Viktor Krum's name on them, which caused Krum to groan in disgust.

The silence was broken by Susan's monotone voice, "That was the creepiest prize I have ever seen."

After a moment or two, the Hall exploded into laughter. Some people were banging their fists on the table from laughing at the embarrassed four. Harry was doing his best to contain his smile, but he caught Hannah's eye and sent her his trademark lopsided grin.

Hermione was the first of the friends to say something. She was almost in shocked silence. "Do you mean to tell me that you just turned them into a human game of Simon Says? Oh and then proceeded to remove their clothing?"

Before Harry or Neville could respond, Fred and George jumped onto the Gryffindor table and began bowing in reverence randomly into the crowds. "We are not worthy! Please join us!"

Hannah looked up towards Professor Dumbledore to see if he would punish the Weasley's for creating an additional spectacle. Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling merrily as he watched the entertainment with an amused expression. She did, however, start choking down her laughter when she saw Professor McGonnagal banging her head lightly against the table in exasperation.

**Hope you liked the chapter! It definitely had a lighter tone that was fun to think up. Please continue to review the story. As some of you may noticed, I was able to incorporate some of your ideas. Don't get me wrong, I have the plot lined out, but I find it fun taking in suggestions. REVIEW!**

**-BB**


	8. The Independent

**Let me start off by saying how I appreciate the praise I got for writing the prank. If anyone was wondering, that was an original idea. I was able to shape the idea from reviews and combining them with a few twists.**

**Thank you reviewers! HolyDragoon, tumshie, mwinter1, the dork knight, psychoyoshi79, god of all, Belle Morte Rising, bleacher, Scabbers1957, william's keeper, HP-DG-SB-RR-HA-TD-LL-KB-AJ-NT, sableye (X3), noshadowone, and rb2312.**

**Chapter 8: The Independent**

The next morning, the five friends found themselves eating in silence at their usual spot. Harry was dressed in athletic looking robes that were red and black. His eyes were locked into a determined glare. Hannah couldn't resist looking sideways at him every few seconds or so, just to make sure he was still among the living.

No one really wanted to break the silence of his preparation, but Hermione spoke up, "You will try to be careful, won't you?" There was a look of pleading on her face.

Harry was finally out of his trance, "You know me Hermione, I don't go looking for trouble, it finds me. Of course, once I see that big dragon staring me down, a little crazy might be good." Everyone nervously chuckled at his comment.

"After all of the things you have done Harry," started Neville, "this should be a breeze for you."

"Thanks Neville."

Hannah noticed that Susan was staring at her with a questioning look on her face, almost as if to ask, '_How are you holding up?' _She merely just shook her off her worry and got back to eating her eggs and bacon.

"Potter, the champions have to go down towards the task. It's time to get prepared." Both Hannah and Harry turned around to see Professor McGonagall. She also seemed a bit anxious for Harry.

Harry dropped his fork and it clattered on his plate. "Okay Professor."

There was a quick chorus of "Good luck" from around the table. Harry stood up slowly and turned to look right at Hannah. He seemed to be considering what to say because it may be the last opportunity to do so.

Before he could say anything that offered the possibility of failure, Hannah jumped out of her seat to give him a warm hug. She put all of her hope and strength into this silent exchange. Harry may have been surprised at first, but he soothed her by returning the hug and rubbing her back.

Professor McGonagall coughed off to the side and Harry slowly released her. He maintained eye contact with her for a few seconds before turning and walking out of the Great Hall. There was no embarrassment from the exchange, but almost a steely resolve. A promise.

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As Hannah made her way into the arena for the First Task, she couldn't help but feel her apprehension skyrocket. Preparing for an task seemed so much simpler before actually seeing the battlefield laid out before her. The was a large enclosure in the forest, surrounded by stands for spectators and a tent for the champions. The actual field was covered with rock outcroppings and a large dragon's nest.

The entire castle was emptying towards the task site. Hundreds of voices were eagerly preparing for the tasks. None of them knew what the champions were going to face.

Once everyone was settled in, Ludo Bagman began the introductions, "Welcome, everyone, to the First Task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament!" He waited a moment for the crowds loud applause. "All of the champions have drawn randomly to face down their fears in a test of their bravery. What is the task you ask? Each champion must retrieve a golden egg. Only, the golden eggs are going to be defended by some of the fiercest creatures know to wizards. Dragons!" Almost as if on cue, loud roars were heard from inside the forest.

The arena cheered in approval as Hannah snorted in disgust. This was no different the gladiators of ancient Rome: barbaric fighting for crowd entertainment. Hearing the dragons only made her worry more.

"First up, we have Cedric Diggory of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. His fearsome beast will be a Swedish Short Snout!," announced Bagman as the Short Snout was brought in by dragon handlers. There was loud applause for Cedric, mainly from the Hufflepuff contingent. Hannah and Susan settled for polite applause. They were there for Harry.

Cedric attempted to distract his dragon by making a small Labrador dog. Unfortunately for him, the dragon lost it's focus and went after Cedric. Although he got the egg, he was severely burned on his face. He was awarded 32 points. He, once again, received thunderous applause from all of the Hufflepuffs, sans two.

"Next, we have Fleur Delacour from the Beauxbatons Acadamy of Magic. She will be facing a Common Welsh Green!" She got a fair amount of applause considering the amount of Beauxbatons students in the stands.

Hannah watched amused when the French girl succeeded in putting her dragon to sleep by putting it to sleep. Her charm was powerful enough to put half of the spectators to sleep. She most likely lost points because she didn't really give a great show and she got her skirt burned a bit. Fleur was awarded 38 points.

"Third, we have Viktor Krum of Durmstrang Institute. His opponent will be a Chinese Fireball!" There were cries of "Krum! Krum!" around the enclosure as he walked in.

Krum's strategy was fairly crude and relied on brute strength to overcome the dragon. He was able to hit the Fireball in the eyes with a _conjunctovitis_ curse. The dragon howled in pain before crushing many of the eggs it was supposed to be guarding. He was able to grab 40 points with his quick and calculating effort.

Apprehension consumed Hannah once she realized that Harry was up next. The dragon that they led into the battleground was easily the most terrifying. It was covered with black scales and had a large tail that had large spikes growing from the tip. "Harry's going to have to get past that?" choked out Hannah.

"Finally, we have our fourth and final champion: Harry Potter. Mr. Potter has chosen to compete as an independent for the remainder of the tournament!" Bagman waited for applause, but found that the entire stadium was shocked into silence. Declaring as an independent was the equivalent of breaking off tournament ties with the school. He was doing this for himself and his closest friends only. "He will be battling it out with a Hungarian Horntail. Horntails are know to be one of the most deadly dragon species in existence."

Hannah watched with trepidation as Harry walked out of the tent, into the silent arena. Hannah and the others shouted out words of encouragement to him, much to the chagrin of the Hufflepuff contingent. Harry was walking in with as much confidence as he could muster. The Hungarian Horntail watched him closely, but chose to wait for him to make the first move.

The audience watched with rapt attention as Harry turned towards the castle and screamed out, "_Accio Firebolt_!"

The dragon chose that moment to strike out with it's fire. Harry was able to narrowly avoid the scorching heat by darting behind a large rock outcropping. Everyone watching was praying that his summon would be successful because he was pinned down otherwise.

In the horizon, Hannah noticed an object flying over to the arena. A surge of pride flowed through her as she watched his Firebolt approach. She let out a whoop of joy when Harry launched himself into the air and landed on his speeding broom. He was well into the air by the time another torrent of fire was shot at him.

Hannah couldn't help but smile as she watched Harry take to the air with a grin on his face; he was at peace in the air. The backing of his friends and returning to familiar setting was giving him confidence.

She watched as Harry flew to about two hundred feet and hovered, seemingly surveying the situation. He was well outside the kill radius of the flames. The stands broke out into cries of shock as they all witnessed Harry start to glow. They were in the dark about his advanced knowledge, but Hannah could tell he was using _potentia focus._ "He said that he wouldn't have enough force. Plus, even if he did, he is to far to get an accurate shot in," she whispered out loud to Susan.

In what was possibly the stupidest thing Hannah had ever witnessed, Harry began speeding down at full speed towards the protective dragon. When she saw a burst of fire come towards him, she let out a shriek in horror as he rolled out of the path keeping all of his momentum.

Harry up righted himself on his Firebolt and shouted, "_Reducto_!" The added momentum of the dive and focusing spell released the yellow bolt of light at the Horntail's skull. Harry swerved out of the way just in time for the spell to strike with a direct hit. The force seemed to shatter the scales, leaving only muscle and making the Horntail much more vulnerable to spell fire.

Suddenly, the Horntail roared in pain and stumbled to it's left, straight for the stands where Hannah and everyone were sitting. The impact was so great that the wards protecting spectators flashed violently in a surge of light. The force was strong enough to shake the foundation of the stands. Everyone sitting on the shaking stands held their breathe collectively.

A sharp crack was heard and all hell broke loose. People began fleeing in every direction, it was anarchy. Susan grabbed Hannah's hand and they started off for a more stable section to stand on. Before they got to a safer area, a stray student ran between them and knocked Hannah off balance, sending her down a few rows of stands. Just as she stopped tumbling, the stands gave an almighty CRACK and she experienced weightlessness for a moment.

She fell ten feet down with the stands and rolled out onto the arena, hurting her ankle. Her head was spinning when she finally stopped moving. The haze in her head cleared up quickly once she realized where she was: in the line of fire, literally, with a dragon that was currently being battled by her fourteen year old friend.

The dragon's roars finally died down enough to notice the debris and the girl currently to the side. The Horntail seemed to forget about Harry orbiting the arena for a moment. High pitched screams from the stands began to erupt as the crowd realized that a student had fallen into the pit.

Hannah could only gaze into the Horntail's bright yellow eyes because she was paralyzed with fear. She contemplated for a moment that she could probably sit still and avoid drawing attention to herself. That plan was thrown out the window when the Horntail bellowed out a load roar and let burst a curtain of fire towards her location.

Time seemed to slow for Hannah as she watched the rolling yellow flames in a trance. Her last few days flashed in her mind, mainly the ones spent with Harry. With one last act of desperation, she called out for one last shred of hope, "Harry!"

Then she saw them, the emerald eyes that had been in her dreams. Harry was a blur of red and black as he sped to her location on his Firebolt. In one motion, he jumped from his broom and rolled on the rocks in front of Hannah. Harry stood protectively over Hannah's crouched form with his left side out as the flames approached.

Harry stood with grim determination and shouted, "_Flectere flammis!_"

Hannah watched in fear and awe as the flames seemed to condense and swirl around Harry's wand. She could feel the heat from her close proximity and she knew it would reach critical fast. Her mind was screaming for him to release it, but the words couldn't come.

Suddenly, Harry shifted his weight and began to turn his body in a full 360, all the while keeping the flames from Hannah. As he completed the rotation, he thrust out with his wand back towards the Horntail.

If anyone doubted that a dragon could be surprised, they were proven wrong as an arena full of spectators watched super-condensed flames impact a startled Horntail. The flames were so potent that the dragon shied away fast enough to trip over it's own clubbed tail.

Hannah watched as Harry dropped to his knees from the exertion of the last few minutes. His breathing was ragged as he stared down the flailing, injured dragon. As the dragon's head began to rise, Harry fired off a quick stunner when the exposed skull was shown. The unscaled flesh was struck dead on and the mighty dragon dropped motionless where it lay.

Every eye seemed trained on the large beast, but Hannah only had eyes for Harry. He was still on his knees , but his breathing was finally starting to calm down. After a moment, Harry finally turned around to meet Hannah's gaze. His emerald eyes were smoldering with emotion as he brought up his hand to cup her cheek.

Hannah was able to gasp out, "Thank you. You … you saved me."

Harry only shook his head, "Couldn't have done it without your help." They both chuckled at his comment, but were once again lost in the close proximity of each other.

Hannah couldn't look away from the boy that was gazing at her like she would disappear at any moment. She had dreamed of the day where she could get the undivided attention of the ebony haired boy, only it didn't involve her getting saved from a fully grown dragon. Hannah saw, for a moment, that Harry was beginning to lean in slowly, but his attention was broken once they heard the thunderous applause.

Both of them gazed around at the hundreds of cheering spectators. Most were chanting, "Potter! Potter!" The students and judges alike were shocked that the youngest champion had just taken down a dragon with no injury to himself. Hannah could spot Susan being comforted by Neville, because there were tears running down her face. Hermione was cheering loudly, also with tears in her eyes.

"You should finish the task Harry," commented Hannah softly. At his confused expression, she added, "The egg. Remember the whole point of the task."

Harry just nodded and gave her a lopsided smile. "Right... the task. It's only a game to them. They don't care what could have been lost today." At this statement, he turned pointedly towards Hannah. Before she could respond, he rose and started his staggering walk towards the nest of eggs.

From her spot on the ground, Hannah watched as Harry dropped once more to his knees in exhaustion. She immediately raced to his side, ignoring the sharp pain in her right foot. "C'mon Harry, you can finish this. Just a few more feet."

With her guiding him, he finally was able to reach the nest. As he finally grabbed the egg, the crowd gave yet another cheer of applause. Hannah watched on with pride filled eyes as Harry lifted up the golden egg in victory. As he brought it back down, he handed it to her and asked with tired eyes, "Can you hold this for a bit?" As she nodded and took the egg, Harry smiled warmly before his green eyes shut and he collapsed to the hard ground one last time.

Hannah watched in horror as he fell down, unmoving. "Harry!"

**Cliffhanger. Yup, you all probably hate me. I've actually had this chapter partially written ever since I started writing. I had that entire scene in my head before I ever thought of anything else plot-wise. Hope it met all of your expectations! Review and let me know your thoughts!**

**-BB**


	9. The Lion's Den

**Thanks to my glorious reviewers: ec-direwolf, Dbarr74, bleacher, traviswj, Zephyrical, HP-DG-SB-RR-HA-TD-LL-KB-AJ-NT, the dork knight, sableye, wizmage, HolyDragoon, southern-reader, psychoyoshi79, Mionefan (x2), mwinter1, god of all, The Submarauder, Ravenmore45, rb2312, and Luxraylover (x3).**

**Chapter 9: The Lion's Den**

Hannah threw the egg to the side and knelt down beside Harry's unconscious form. She started shacking his shoulders, "Harry! Wake Up!" At seeing his body slump side-to-side from her ministrations, she began to tear up. She lifted up his head and shoulders and started to hug him while whispering, "Please Harry. I can't lose you so soon."

At hearing the sound of approaching voices, Hannah turned her head towards the tent. She could see Madam Pomfrey and several dragon handlers rushing towards them.

When Pomfrey reached their position, she immediately started casting diagnostic spells over Harry. At seeing the symbols flashing from the spell, she called out to the dragon handlers that were keeping watch, "Move him to the medical tent! He needs treatment quickly." Two of the handlers immediately rushed over and picked up Harry gently.

Hannah watched with horror filled eyes as Harry was carried away. She felt a hand on her shoulder, so she turned towards Madam Pomfrey. "He should be alright dear. He is magically exhausted right now and he needs attention now before his core becomes unstable. Follow me if you want to stay with him."

The terrified Hufflepuff nodded and picked up Harry's golden egg before following the matron. Various smells of medical potions assaulted her nose as she walked into the medical tent. She could spot Harry being tended by several medi-wizards and Madam Pomfrey. They were force feeding various potions and casting spells every ten seconds or so.

Hannah stood off to the side to watch them work. She noticed that the rest of the champions were watching intently as well. Cedric tried to catch her eye, but she refused to acknowledge his existence. The only thing keeping Hannah from screaming was the slow rise and fall of Harry's chest. Breathing meant survival. Sometime during her waiting, a medi-wizard came over and healed her ankle, which was beginning to swell.

When she saw the group of healers walk away from his cot, Hannah sat on a stool next to him. She was glancing between the golden egg and Harry when Madam Pomfrey spoke to her, "Just give him a moment or so dear. His body just needs to absorb the potions so his core can start recharging. The judges are waiting for him to wake up before they release his scores."

At that moment, Ron burst into the tent and scanned the room for Harry. When his eyes rested on Hannah sitting next to his cot, Ron sneered at her. "What are you doing here Puff?" barked Ron.

She huffed indignantly from her seat and yelled back, "Me? What are you doing here? You haven't spoken to him in weeks!"

"I'm his best friend! We've been friends for four years now. Now that I'm here to apologize, everything will be back to normal. He'll have no use for you," stated Ron, as if it were obvious.

"Are you that dense Weasley?' questioned Hannah. "You've been nothing but a prat to him since he was shunned by the entire school. When he needed a friend, all you did was get jealous and call him a glory-seeking brat. I barely knew Harry and I could tell that he would never do something that selfish."

"Oh yeah," shouted Ron as he strode over to Hannah's position. She stood up in response to his close proximity, just in case he tried anything. "You're just another Badger. All you Hufflepuffs are the same. You're probably just spying on Harry for Cedric! Your house could never win on their own, so you've resorted to cheating your way past everyone else."

"You have no idea what you're talking about!" fired back Hannah. "In case you haven't noticed, I've been ostracized by my entire house just for supporting Harry. It was a simple matter of believing in Harry's innocence and now I can't even go to bed without seeing their hateful glares!" Cedric hung his head in shame after hearing her words, but Hannah didn't notice.

Ron started pushing her back against the tent. "You think you're friends with Harry just because of what you've lost for him and what he might owe you? I've seen the looks he gives you! You think that you can string him around like some harlot? You're probably just spreading your legs for him and..." WHACK!

Whatever he was about to say was cut off as he fell side ways and landed up sprawled on the ground. Harry was standing next to Hannah with his eyes blazing in anger. He had just decked Ron with one of his fists. Hannah was completely shaken up from the whole scene and could feel her eyes moisten once more.

Ron jumped back up with a furious expression, but he was held back by Krum and a badly burned Cedric. "Harry, what the hell do you think you're doing? You're choosing her over me? Can't you see what she's doing to you Harry? She's breaking you from your friends!"

Harry shook his head in disappointment; he no longer seemed angry. "No Ron. You just broke off from your true friends. What you just said was unforgivable and we will never be friends again. You seem to think that I have no one else that cares for me in this school. I've found what true friends could be like and I understand now that you aren't one of those people." Once again, Harry's eyes lit up with fiery emotion as he spoke, "I don't want to ever hear that you are harassing me or my friends ever again. You will get much worse than a fist if you try something like that again."

"But Harry, mate..."

"I am no longer your mate. Get out of the tent. Only friends and champions can be in here," stated Harry coldly.

Ron hung his head in shame as Krum and Cedric let go of his arms. He made his way over to the entrance and exited without sparing a glance back.

Harry sighed as his ex-best friend left them in peace. He then turned to Krum and Cedric and spoke earnestly, "Thank you for intervening there. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't stepped in."

"He vas crossing a line," grunted Krum. "Never attack voman's virtue." With those words he walked away and went back to sulking quietly in the corner.

Cedric stepped in front of the fourth-years. "I never got to thank you for warning me Harry. That was quite honorable of you."

"Don't worry about it Cedric," answered Harry as he stuck out his hand. They shook and any hard feelings seemed to be forgiven.

The seventh-year Hufflepuff was silent for a minute before he spoke up once more. "I just thought you should know Hannah, you aren't so alone in Hufflepuff as you think," started Cedric. Hannah looked up at hearing him speak and Harry put a comforting arm around her. "Justin seemed to be leaning into your corner, even before. He approached me yesterday asking if I could speak to everyone on behalf of you and Harry. Seek him out and just listen to what he has to say alright."

Hannah could only nod silently at the thought of gaining back one of her 'friends'. She turned to Harry and spoke, "We should get out there. You still need to get your scores to officially end the First Task."

"Let's go then."

As they stepped out into the sunlight, Harry and Hannah were immediately assaulted by brown and red hair respectively. Susan and Hermione both had tears of joy in their eyes at seeing their best friends safe from harm. The only thing that pulled the friends apart was the applause from the crowd. Everyone in the stands was clapping for Harry's effort in the arena. Hannah handed him his egg and he raised it up, much to the delight of the crowd.

The booming voice of Ludo Bagman began to echo throughout the stands, "As you can see, our youngest champion is healthy and triumphant! As of course is his beautiful young friend." Hannah blushed heavily at his words, but she didn't care once she noticed the smile Harry was shooting her. "This was a task for the ages! We may now begin with Mr. Potter's scores now that the Horntail is being safely removed in order to begin it's recovery."

Hannah, just then, noticed that the dragon had in fact been moved during their time in the tent. She couldn't really feel sorry for the beast that almost fried her and Harry.

The crowd began to quiet down as the judges prepared to score Harry's performance. Madame Maxime was first to project a number. Her wand released a ribbon making a large number ten.

"Wow Harry! A perfect score from the enemy school," cheered Susan.

Mr. Crouch was the next to go and he released a large nine into the air. He seemed to be looking right at Hannah as he chose his score.

"He must have taken off for having Hannah help you at the end. You weren't supposed to have any outside help," commented Hermione. At her words, Hannah felt miserable that she took away from his score.

Harry seemed to notice her change in mood, so he slipped his hand into hers. "I wouldn't have finished without your help. You have absolutely nothing to be sorry for." At seeing honesty in his eyes, she held her head high for the remaining scores.

Dumbledore sat there with twinkling eyes and shot up a perfect ten. The crowd was absolutely ecstatic when Ludo Bagman tossed up a perfect score as well. So far he had gotten three out of four perfect scores.

"I think Bagman may be betting on me to win the tournament. He keeps asking if I need advice," commented Harry idly.

When Karkaroff's turn came up, he had a scowl on his face. He sneered in Hannah's direction and threw up a six. The entire arena seemed to boo at the last judge's performance grading.

Hannah was about to argue, but she was drowned out by Neville's protests, "C'mon! You gave Krum a ten and he smashed all of his eggs! You arrogant..." But he was cut off from a slap to his arm by Susan. She was glaring at him playfully and Hannah couldn't help but smile. Old and new friends were getting along.

Ludo Bagman's voice once again spoke up, "That brings Independent competitor Harry Potter the lead at forty-five points! And so ends the First Task of the Tri-Wiward Tournament." At hearing the total, Harry was mobbed by his closest friends for a group hug.

Since the task was officially over, the stands began to empty out back towards the castle; the five friends joined up in the masses.

There seemed to be minor tension when Ginny Weasley came to congratulate Harry. She seemed thrilled that he had gotten past his dragon, but once she caught sight of Hannah, she started glaring. Hannah found it quite odd and Susan sent Ginny a smug look.

"Hey, do either of you ladies have an owl that I can borrow? I need to send my godfather a message that I survived the task," questioned Harry.

Hannah nodded. "Sure, you can borrow Ricochet. I didn't know you had a godfather Harry."

Harry rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably, "Yeah, well he doesn't like to stay settled for long. He's constantly moving around."

"What wrong with Hedwig Harry?" questioned Neville.

"Um, she's been sick lately. She won't be able to fly long distance for another few days."

The group continued to talk about the Tournament as they made their way up to the owlry. They found it quite funny that Harry seemed to be using the most advanced repertoire of spells, considering he was three years younger than all of them.

Hannah strode out into the center of the owlry and whistled a soft four note tune. A brown owl with white tipped wings flew down from the rafters and landed on her shoulders. "Hey, Rico. Would you mind delivering a letter for my friend?"

Rico stared into her eyes for a moment and then turned towards Harry, who was standing a few feet behind. Ricochet appraised him for a moment before hooting in agreement. Ricochet hopped off of Hannah's shoulder and onto Harry's outstretched arm. Harry walked towards the window, attached a letter to his leg, and whispered something to him before watching him fly out the window.

"We should probably get back to the Common Room," interjected Neville. "I'm sure the Weasley twins are going to have a party in your honor tonight."

Hannah saddened at the thought of having to go back to their own house so soon. "Well, I guess we'll see you guys tomorrow then."

"Nonsense," interjected Harry. "I'm not going to a party without all of my friends. None of them defended me when the school turned against me. Consider this a formal invitation: Would you ladies like to enter the Lions Den?"

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Hannah and Susan were currently standing just outside the portrait of the Fat Lady, wondering how they agreed to walking into 'enemy territory'. Thankfully, they trusted Harry to diffuse any tension. Harry spoke the password, "Triumph." The portrait nodded and swung open.

The deafening sound of applause was heard as the quintet made their way into the room. Unfortunately for them, the noise cut off once the Gryffindors realized that there were a pair of Hufflepuffs in their midst. Every one of them seemed to be staring.

Harry defused some tension by patting his hair in a frantic manner, "Oh man. Neville, did an owl do it's business on my head?"

"Nope," laughed Neville.

Ginny stormed over with Ron in tow, "What are those two doing with you! This is a Gryffindor party! Shouldn't you be celebrating with your own housemates?"

"Oh, a Gryffindor party?" mocked Harry. "In case all of you failed to notice, I'm not representing Hogwarts or Gryffindor. I'm listed as independent. Cedric is the rightful Hogwarts champion so he gets that honor. Considering the fact that the banners here say 'Congrats Harry', I doubt you'll kick my friends out, because if they go, I go." Harry was scanning the Gryffindors for any signs of disagreement.

The Weasley twins were the ones who approached Harry.

"Don't let our younger-"

"-siblings speak for all of Gryffindor."

"We're just here to celebrate the survival and triumph-"

"-of our good friend Harry. Welcome, honorable-"

"-Badgers of Hufflepuff. Any friend of Harry's-

"-is welcome anytime. Butterbeer ladies?"

Susan and Hannah let out a nervous laugh and accepted the drinks. "I don't know if I'll ever get used to that kind of speaking," joked Susan.

The party continued after the small setback and the opening of the golden egg. The loud wailing was actually painful to hear. The people who suggested the opening were the first to tag swigs of their drinks in embarrassment.

Hannah watched as Fred and George led Harry over to a corner. They were whispering to him and snickering about something. Suddenly, Neville sprouted feathers and turned into a large canary. Susan turned to see the twins outright laughing, so she fired off a few stingers at their butts. The entire common room laughed at the sight of the pranksters avoiding the red-headed Puff chasing them around the room.

Hannah was cut off from her amusement when Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet, and Katie Bell surrounded her. "Don't worry Hannah, we're not here to start trouble," started Angelina.

"We are here to give you a warning as Harry's unofficial big sisters," continued Alicia.

"Don't hurt Harry, or you'll have to deal with us," finished Katie as she pointed to the three of them.

"Why would I hurt him?" questioned Hannah.

Angelina smiled. "You two are dancing around each other, it's pretty obvious. We haven't been there for him this year., but you have."

"And for that we respect you Hannah."

Hannah could only smile in response to the three chasers who obviously cared for Harry's welbeing. A rival house was more receptive to her befriending Harry than her own. Harry caught her gaze from across the room and waved her over. The night was still young and Hannah was going to celebrate with her closest friends.

**Hope you liked it. I don't really care if you thought Ron acted OOC there, I just wanted an excuse to punch him haha. Review and let me get your thoughts.**

**-BB**


	10. Aftermath

**To all the glorius reviewers, thank you! god of all, the dork knight, whatweareafraidof, Luxraylover, rb2312, Benevolent Abyss, Reyana00, mwinter1, and Vukk.**

**the dork knight- Happy Birthday!**

**Chapter 10: Aftermath**

"Hannah, we should really be getting back to the common room," whispered Susan from behind.

Hannah was currently running her hand through Harry's unruly hair as he was sleeping on the couch in the common room. He had drifted off to sleep as the party progressed and his head had drifted onto her shoulder. Harry obviously downplayed how tired he actually was following the task. "Yeah, I guess we should. We do have class tomorrow." Hannah could barely take her eyes off of Harry's peaceful form. He seemed so much more at ease when he was sleeping.

Unfortunately for Hannah, the two Hufflepuffs succeeded in transferring Harry away from her , so they could leave. "Bye, Neville," the two girls chorused at the same time.

"Are you sure you guys will be alright? Curfew started like thirty minutes ago and I'm sure Harry wouldn't want you to get caught."

Hannah shook her head, "Don't worry about us. Tell Harry we'll see him tomorrow and that we'll be careful."

And with those parting words, the girls exited the portrait and made their way silently down the hall. They had some experience navigating after hours, but never this far from their common room. Silently stalking their way down the second floor, Hannah almost let out a shriek when they saw Mrs. Norris sitting at the base of the stairs. The gold, almost glowing, eyes stared at them for a second before letting out a menacing screech.

"Run!" commanded Susan. They ran back up the stairs and took a sharp left turn to avoid the wheezing of the approaching caretaker, Mr. Filch. Considering, they weren't on great terms with their house already, any loss of points wouldn't help much.

The girls bolted through the corridor hoping for an exit, but ran headlong into a dead end. "Shit," muttered Susan.

"What are we going to do Sue?" whispered Hannah. They could hear two pairs of footsteps approaching, one on each side of the corridor entrance. The Hufflepuff pair was shocked when a cloak appeared out of nowhere and pulled them off to the side.

Both girls tried to shriek in response, but their mouths were covered by a pair of hands behind them. A voice was heard, "Shhh. Be quiet!" Hannah's eyes bugged out when she recognized the voice whispering. In order to confirm her guess, she turned slightly over her shoulder and saw deep emerald eyes gazing at her. Harry had somehow found them in the corridor.

Suddenly, Filch and Mrs. Norris rounded the corner and started scanning the hall for any trace of students out of bed. Susan and Hannah shared a confused glance at each other as they gazed through the cloak. _'Why can't Filch see us?' _ Apparently not seeing anyone, Filch stalked away in the opposite direction, muttering about his knee.

Hannah could hear Harry let out a breath of relief as Filch's footsteps got farther away. Harry whipped off the cloak so the girls could see him better. "What did you just do Harry? How did he not see us?" asked Hannah. Susan nodded in agreement.

Harry smirked and held out the cloak for them to see, "Ladies, what you have here is the infamous Potter family invisibility cloak. It's been handed down for generations in my family."

Susan ran her hands threw the cloak. "It feels like water. There are no imperfections in it. Usually invisibility cloaks get worn out over the years. Auntie has one and it's nowhere near this in quality."

"We could have avoided all of this if you had just woken me up, you know," scolded Harry.

"How were we supposed to know you had a way of sneaking around the castle?" chided Susan. "Plus, if Hannah wasn't enjoying your unconscious company so much, we would have got back before curfew."

Harry and Hannah immediately went red in the face. "I still would have liked to say goodbye," he whispered, staring at the floor.

"That's great and all, but we really need to get back," interjected Hannah impatiently and embarrassed.

"Right," chuckled Harry awkwardly. "Get under and let's go."

Now that some explanations were out of the way, the trio made their way back downstairs. Hannah had goosebumps the entire way down because Harry was breathing down her neck every foot or so. Thankfully, they didn't encounter any trouble.

As Susan opened the Hufflepuff entrance, Harry threw off the cloak to say goodbye. "I'll see you guys tomorrow. Hopefully your housemates will lay off a bit. Can't hate you for supporting an independent, can they?" joked Harry.

Hannah, who was stepping through the entrance, turned back for a moment, "I'm not looking for their approval Harry and neither should you."

She watched as Harry contemplated a moment before nodding solemnly. He slipped on his cloak and disappeared from sight.

* * *

><p><p>

Hannah awoke the next morning apprehensive. She may have told Harry that she didn't care for the opinions of others, but that didn't mean she wasn't nervous. Harry most likely changed a lot of opinions with the First Task and she would probably see changes as well.

As the two girls walked down the stairs to the common room, Justin was waving them over in a corner. "What do you think he wants," queried Susan.

"Cedric said that he wanted to speak with us. We should have expected this."

When they sat down opposite Justin, he started, "Hi guys. How have you been lately?"

"Brilliant," answered Hannah curtly. Susan didn't react.

"Look," started Justin, "I know I've been a prat lately. I wasn't thinking clearly the past few weeks. I'm closer friends with both of you than those berks Zac and Ernie. The only reason I hung out with them is because I didn't clue in to the truth fast enough to be a part of your 'little statement'"

"You think we're doing this as some sort of statement against our house?" cross-examined Susan.

"No, I am merely alerting you to what the house thinks you're doing. I let my emotions get the better of me and it delayed me from supporting the two of you," stated Justin as he hung his head in shame. "I would much rather hang out with my friends than force you guys away."

"You didn't exactly show that lately," snapped Hannah cooly. Her arms were crossed in a no-nonsense matter.

Justin shuffled uneasily in his chair. "I saw how the house began treating the two of you. Although I knew it was wrong, a small part of me was hoping that you would fall back onto our side of the Tournament even though I also saw the truth behind the matter. Once I saw how close you guys were becoming with the Gryffindors, I tried to persuade Cedric to intervene on your behalf. His attempts fell on deaf ears and now I've decided to stop trying to pull you back. I just want to be friends with you guys again." His eyes were almost shining with sincerity and the girls believed him.

"You understand that you will be targeted by ridicule just for associating with us and Harry right?"

Justin nodded. "Yeah, I've already decided that I'm okay with that. As for supporting a champion in the tournament, if I'm lucky to become friends with Harry, I see no reason I can't support him and Cedric."

Hannah looked towards confirmation from Susan before saying anything. At seeing her nod, Hannah spoke, "Alright, we can give you another shot Justin. Sit with us at breakfast; test the waters a bit. We've become great friends with Harry, Hermione, and Neville. No offense Justin, but we won't leave our friends if you don't get along with them."

Justin smiled warmly. "Great! You won't regret this. Plus, I'm already on pretty friendly terms with Hermione. Before the Goblet incident, she used to help me in my Charms homework."

"Why would you need help in Charms? We usually go to you if we needed help," commented Hannah.

Justin shrank in his seat as Susan eyed him with a devilish smirk. "Hmm. Friendly terms indeed."

"Not a word!" squeaked an embarrassed Justin as he hopped out of his seat towards breakfast.

"Aww it's good to have him back," sighed Hannah happily. "It might not be perfect, but things might actually go back to normal."

Susan shook her head. "No, better than normal." The best friends then linked arms and followed Justin with smiles on their faces.

* * *

><p><p>

"Umm, hello Justin," greeted a shocked Hermione. The three Hufflepuffs had just plopped down next to the Gryffindors.

Harry and Neville had puzzled looks on their faces. Thankfully, neither of them looked ready to boot him from the table. Before Harry could say a word, Hannah grabbed his hand under the table and sent him a quick look to silence him momentarily.

Justin cleared his throat, "I know you guys are wondering why I'm sitting here." At seeing three nods in agreement, he continued, "I was wondering if you'd give me a shot at being friends with you guys. The girls have stated plainly to me that you guys were now considered their closest friends." At his words, the Gryffindors smiled in thanks to the blushing Puffs. "The only way I can see getting my friends back, is to expand my circle as well. Will you give me a chance?"

Harry shot quick glances at Hermione and Neville before turning to Ernie. "Quick question. Do you think I entered myself into the Tournament?"

Justin shook his head. "No, I don't. It just took me a bit longer than these two. I respect how you've handled the situation so far, even if I was one who aided your torment for a bit."

"Okay, we're willing to prove your friendship. It's obvious Hannah and Susan would be happy if you spent some time with us. Their happiness means a lot to me," revealed Harry.

"_Hannah's!_" coughed Neville, in an attempt at a joke. Susan laughed and swatted Neville's antics.

Justin looked on amused and was wondering how much he had to catch up on.

"Oi! Justin, what are you doing?" someone shouted out. All six friends turned to see Ernie and Zacharias stomping towards them.

"Oh hello boys. I am merely finding myself in better company," stated Justin calmly.

"You've betrayed the house as well!" accused Ernie. He looked towards the Hufflepuff table for support, but he found that there were less supporters than usual. Harry must have converted a fair few of the 'Hate Harry' contingent.

"There's nothing wrong with having friends in other houses. I can still show my support for Cedric along with Harry," countered Justin

"Whatever. When this year ends, you'll regret it," boasted Zacharias.

Harry intervened, "Hey Zac!" He pointed towards the blonde's hair with a smile on his face.

Zacharias instantly grabbed his hair in anticipation of a new color, but the laughter of the six friends caused him realize he was being played. The two boys turned and left with as much dignity as they could muster.

Screeches were heard as the Great Hall was flooded with hundreds of owls delivering mail. Neville paid for his Daily Prophet and flipped it out to read. His eyes were scanning the paper and his eyes went wide. Susan saw his reaction and leaned over to get a view of the paper. She put her hand over her mouth and muttered, "Oh my."

"What is it? Is Skeeter painting me as the next Dark Lord in training now? Figures. She can't just leave me alone," muttered Harry.

"Um, not exactly Harry," answered Neville. "Quite the opposite really."

Now Hannah's interest was piqued. She snatched the paper from Neville and held it for her and Harry to read.

_**The Knight, the Damsel, and the Dragon**_

_**By: Rita Skeeter**_

_In what was shocking start to the Tri-Wizard Tournament, the four champions were tasked with battling their very own ferocious dragon. Each champion was to steal a golden egg from the clutches of a for-mentioned nesting dragon. After seeing the challenge test the might of the three eldest champions to the far reaches of their schooling, every spectator was anticipating the performance of Harry Potter: Boy-Who-Lived and youngest Tri-Wizard competitor._

_Mr. Potter managed to shock the crowd preceding the Task by announcing his participation as an Independent. Speculators can only guess at his motives but the two primary theories range from craving additional attention to showing respect to Cedric Diggory, the original Hogwarts Champion. Unfortunately, Mr. Potter was unavailable for comment on the subject._

_Considering the disadvantage this young champion faced being only a fourth-year, many spectators, including myself, were shocked to find out the skill level of Mr. Potter. His first act inside the arena was to summon his personal broom from Hogwarts. Once in the air, Mr. Potter proceeded to blast his dragon, a Hungarian Horntail, with an overpowered Reducto curse to the head._

_The dragon was hit with enough force to send the flailing beast into the stands, causing them to collapse. Although most spectators were able to reach safety in time, one student wasn't so lucky. Hannah Abbott, a fourth-year Hufflepuff, was thrown into the dragons path, with only Mr. Potter to aid her. As the dragon attempted to burn Ms. Abbott, Mr. Potter intervened with some impressive advanced magic at the last moment to re-direct and protect the young woman. He subsequently, finished off the dragon with a stunner before claiming the egg as his prize._

_But was the egg truly the prize? Mr. Potter seemed quite concerned for Ms. Abbott's safety as he was willing to put his life on the line for her. When he later collapsed, Ms. Abbott was seen crying and hugging his unconscious body quite closely. (See pictures below) No word yet on how Hermione Granger is taking Harry's relationship with the beautiful Hufflepuff. There are questions that need answering and this reporter won't rest until the story unfolds completely._

Hannah looked lower on the page for the accompanying picture. The picture showed an exhausted Harry dropping to the ground and Hannah tossing the egg aside to comfort him. The compassion Hannah felt for Harry was radiating off the page.

When Hannah raised her head to see the reactions of the student body, she regretted the decision instantly as she saw almost every present student and teacher watching her intently. Her head dropped in embarrassment. She tried to catch Harry's gaze though her cascading blonde hair.

His response was to clasp her hand in his softly. "Why are you embarrassed Hannah? Rita is just trumping up the story in order to sell more papers."

"She's implying that we are romantically involved or something. We know it's not true, but people will talk," worried Hannah.

"Like they don't already talk about us," commented Susan dryly. Everyone chuckled at her diffusion of the tension.

"Hannah I don't care what they talk about. Plus, pretty much everything she said was true. I WAS concerned for my 'beautiful Hufflepuff' friend, as she so eloquently put it," finished Harry in a playful manner. Hannah blushed heavily, much to the amusement of everyone seated, including newcomer Justin.

After they finished laughing at her discomfort, Hannah leaned over conspiratorially towards Hermione, "I hope we can still be friends since I stole Harry from you."

"I think I'll manage."

Hannah turned to talk to Harry, but she was shocked to see him staring blankly into the paper. "Harry, what's wrong now?"

He turned towards her with a blank face and asked, "Why did you lie to me Hannah?"

"What?" screeched Hannah. Her mind was racing. What had brought this on all of a sudden? They were just joking around and now her mind was reeling for answers. "What did I do wrong?"

"You said that you would hold my egg for me," answered Harry softly with a fake pout. He pointed to the picture of her tossing the egg aside haphazardly as she tried to help Harry. "See, you didn't even place it down gently. I worked very hard to earn that egg."

"Well, I was a bit more preoccupied with your health Harry!" At seeing the laughter dancing in his eyes she started poking him repeatedly in the ribs. "You prat! How dare you make jokes about that kind of stuff!"

"Hey... oww... I was just kidding... stop... Oh, now it's on," broke down Harry. He eventually responded by wrapping her arms in a bear hug, effectively pinning them to her sides. While holding her, he was able to tickle her sides until her laughter was ringing throughout the Hall.

Hannah completely forgot about the article by the time Harry was done.

**Wow 10 chapters down. Over 170 Favs and 250 Alerts already. You guys are great! Hope everyone had a had a great 4th if you live in the good ol USA.**

**Keep up the reviews guys! I appreciate every one of them!**

**-BB**


	11. Lessons in Courtship

**Thanks to all who commented since the last update: FancyFreeThinker101, the dork knight, mwinter1, Viralic1, madeye harry, monbade, Pipothefreak, traviswj, whatweareafraidof, OldMasterMage, Drac-frst, rb2312, Benevolent Abyss, PR2, HP-DG-SB-RR-HA-TD-LL-KB-AJ-NT, The Submarauder, Noxy88, tumshie, brighteyes343, CompVizer, wizmage, sableye, Toby860, and Scabbers1957.**

**Chapter 11: Lessons in Courtship**

A few days following the First Task, Hannah found herself sitting in-between Justin and Susan on a couch in the Hufflepuff common room. They were slightly off to the side to avoid Ernie and Zacharias. Currently, every Hufflepuff was gathered waiting for their head of house, Professor Sprout, to appear. Only a few of the older students knew why they were all gathered, but they weren't offering up an explanation.

"I wonder why she called a house meeting," mused Susan.

"Who knows," answered Hannah. "Don't think it has to do with anything punishable. The people that know don't seem to care right now."

The room began to quiet down once Sprout walked in with a cheery grin on her face. "Glad all of you could make it today. Today, I have some wonderful news to share with all of you. Following the traditions of the Tri-Wizard tournament, Christmas day will bring about the hosting of the Yule Ball."

Hannah's eyes went wide for a moment as she realized the importance of the previous statement.

"The Yule Ball is a dance to allow students from all of the schools to mingle and enjoy a night of relaxation. Formal dress is required and only fourth-years and above may attend the festivities." There was a loud groan from the younger girls in the room. "Unless, of course, an older student invites a younger one as their date. The ball will last from eight o'clock until midnight. Just so you know, I've decided to break the news to my house a bit earlier than the other professors. Having a bit of advance notice gives you some time to plan who you may wish to escort to the ball. Good luck and chop, chop!" cheered Professor Sprout as she clapped her hands and strode from the common room.

The volume within the room immediately shot up as teenagers began to gossip on the latest turn in the festivities. Justin was contemplative, Susan looked smug, and Hannah was having a mini panic attack. Susan broke the silence between friends with a snicker, "So, Hannah, who do _you_ want your date to be?"

"Not funny Sue! What if he doesn't want to ask me?" questioned Hannah softly. We haven't exactly known each other for that long. He may want to take someone he's comfortable with, like Hermione."

Susan snorted in a very un-lady-like way. "Gosh, you can be so dense. Do you just think he'll forget what's been happening between the two of you by taking the easy way out? And Hermione? Please."

"Hey what's wrong with Hermione?" piped up an indignant Justin.

Susan smacked him upside the head. "Nothing's wrong with her you dolt. Hermione is like his sister and he has no reason to ask her when he has a beautiful witch willing to snog his brains out!"

Hannah blushed and found no words to refute her best friend. Although, she was embarrassed now, Susan definitely had a way of putting things into context.

The red-head smirked in victory before turning towards Justin. "Well, us girls will have to wait our dates out, you to be the only one actually having to ask someone. So tell us Justin, any plans?"

"Of course," answered Justin in a fake pompous manner. "My brilliant schemes will allow me to woo my way into a beautiful woman's heart."

"You have no idea what to do, do you?" grinned Susan. Justin deflated and nodded. "That's what I thought. We can give you some lessons in courtship. Easiest way: just ask."

"Or you could do something romantic. Doing that would send a definitive message that you like her more seriously than just being friends," offered Hannah. It went unsaid that she was hoping for that type of invitation, although any would do.

"But please, if you take any advice from us whatsoever, never, I repeat, never make a girl feel like she's a last resort. Anything that makes her think insignificant in any way is going to find you on the ground clutching your jewels."

Justin nodded in thought as they heard someone approach. "Oi Hannah!" The three friends to see Ernie and Zacharias approaching them. Ernie was the one speaking, "I know we've been at odds lately, but I'm willing to overlook that. I've decided that I will allow you to accompany me to the ball if you abandon that loser Potter. I can tell that you are hoping that he will ask you. Thankfully, if you go with me, you won't be humiliated when he doesn't ask."

Susan and Justin could only look on with shock at how arrogant Ernie was being towards Hannah, who wanted nothing to do with him. The rage could be seen in her eyes as she yelled out a spell her mother taught her, "_Terebro_!" The magenta spell connected with Ernie's man parts and he went cross eyed from the impact. He immediately dropped to his knees and clutched his damaged goods while wheezing for air. He was just struck with a mild bludgeoner that packed quite a punch.

Zacharias immediately went to the aid of his friend and tried to lift him off the ground. The sneers on their faces were crushed as they glanced back towards Hannah. She was currently pointing her wand at both boys with a look of contempt.

"And that my dear friend Justin," lectured Susan, "Was a perfect example of lesson three."

"Don't be an arrogant prick. Got it."

Susan tapped Justin's cheek, "Good boy."

* * *

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In the days following the Hufflepuff meeting, the six friends continued to go to classes and hang out as much as possible. It was quite obvious when the Gryffindors found out about the Yule Ball; Harry and Neville randomly began being flustered around Hannah and Susan. The boys obviously had plans in their minds, but they never seemed to act on them. All of the girls, including Hermione, were having a great time watching the boys squirm before they could find their courage.

Justin appeared close to asking Hermione because he seemed to be studying with her daily in the library. In fact, Harry and Hannah were just leaving the library, when they heard a loud "Yes!" exclaimed from inside. They both rushed back inside to find a very flustered, but happy, Justin being hugged by the bushy-haired bookworm. Madam Pince was glaring at the two from behind a bookshelf.

"So, which lesson did you resort to?" questioned Hannah.

"I just asked," chuckled Justin. "Figured the direct approach was just the thing. Plus, Krum was giving her some really creepy looks from across the room."

Hannah and Harry turned around to see Viktor Krum camped up with some books a few tables over. He had a scowl on his face as he stared at them.

Hermione slapped Justin on the arm and scolded him, "Hush you. I'm sure he's only mad that we're making a scene right now. It is a library after all."

"He was like that before I even asked you." Hermione just rolled her eyes at his response.

"Well, I guess we will leave you two here again. C'mon Harry, show me the kitchens," instructed Hannah. Harry looked mildly uncomfortable under her gaze, so he settled for nodding.

When they finally left the library, Harry seemed to relax a little. "So how is it that you've never been to the kitchens? Your common room is very close by."

Hannah huffed in annoyance. "None of the older students tell us. They see it as a coming of age thing. They only let us know when we are in our O.W.L. year. Since our studies are much more difficult, they acknowledge the need for a chance at a break."

"That makes sense I guess. I mean the Weasley twins have known about the kitchens since their first year and look how they turned out," joked Harry. As they approached a large portrait of fruit, Harry grabbed her hand softly. "Watch this." He took her fingers and guided them along the pear on the portrait.

To Hannah's shock, the pear started giggling and squirming under her touch. Suddenly, the pear transformed into a green door handle. "Wicked," whispered Hannah. She grabbed the handle with her opposite hand and pulled open the painting doorway.

Stepping through the door, Hannah was awed by the enormous room and it's high ceiling. The kitchen was almost a duplicate of the Great Hall, complete with four house tables. There were house elves everywhere, bowing them as they walked through.

"Let's sit over there," pointed Harry.

Hannah followed him and sat down at a small table near a large fireplace, but that wasn't what drew her attention. There was a small house elf passed out on the table still sitting on a stool. The elf was clutching a butterbeer loosely. "Um, is she alright Harry?"

Harry shrugged her concerns off and sat down. "Don't worry, that's just Winky. She's currently drowning her sorrows in butterbeer."

"What could possibly cause her to be in this state," queried the confused Puff as she took her seat.

"She was freed this summer by her Master, Barty Crouch."

"Wha!" jumped Winky. "Did someone -hic- mention my -hic- master?" Before either of them could answer, she passed out again with a thud.

Hannah blinked in shock. "That was... interesting."

"Yeah, she's not taking to freedom too well, completely unlike Dobby," commented Harry.

"Who's Dob-"

"Harry Potter Sir!" greeted a multicolored projectile. The voice belonged to a house elf who was covered in the oddest assortment of clothing Hannah had ever seen. The hyper elf was latched onto Harry leg in a death grip. "Harry Potter has come again to see Dobby. Sir is too kind." Hannah saw tennis ball sized green eyes turn towards her and the voiced squeaked once more. "And yous has brought company!"

Hannah stuck out her hand, "Um, hello there. My name is Hannah Abbott."

Dobby started to tear up, "Mr. Harry Potter's girl friend is too kind to Dobby. Treats him like an equal!" He grabbed her hand with both of his before vigorously shaking hers.

Hannah and Harry both went red and said at the same time , "I'm not his girlfriend." "She's not my girlfriend."

Dobby looked suspicious at both of them. "Are you a girl?"

"Yes."

"Are you Harry Potter's friend?"

"Yes."

"Than you are his girl friend, Miss."

Harry chuckled at the logic and Hannah smiled. "You're right Dobby. Thanks for clarifying that."

"Yous is welcome. Would you like something to eat?"

Harry shrugged at Hannah before he spoke, "Yeah, can we get two butterbeers..."

"And some treacle tart," added Hannah with a wink. He shot her a lop-sided grin in response.

Dobby bowed and hurried away, but as he left another elf took his place. "Excuse me young sir. Is the wicked girl coming back down again." The apprehensive elf was wringing his hands on his tea towel.

"Who are you talking about?"

"The bushy-one, sir. We would like to request that she not come here no mores. Bushy-one scares us down here," pleaded the elf.

Harry was sitting there shocked and Hannah was giggling uncontrollably. When he could finally speak he tried to calm down the elf, "I can try. The bushy-one is determined, (Hannah snorted) but I will plead your case. It is obvious that you like your lifestyle as it is."

"Thank yous sir," bowed the elf and hustled away.

Hannah watched the little elf leave before turning to Harry with a smile on her face, "So, the 'bushy-one'. Would that be Hermione?"

Harry rolled his eyes and nodded. "Hermione isn't well liked down here. She's trying to get them rights and accept wages, but anyone can see that doing so would cause chaos. Right Winky?" The drunk house elf hiccuped in response. Harry thrust out his arms as if to say,_ 'See what I mean?'_

"Here you go. Two butterbeers for Harry Potter sir and his girl friend." Dobby had returned while they were speaking. Although she knew it wasn't real, Hannah's heart melted when Dobby muttered those words.

Both teens grabbed a bottle as Dobby left. "Cheers," muttered Harry as they clinked bottles. Harry then reached over and toasted Winky as well. Hannah just about lost her self-control when he did that. She couldn't remember the last time that she was so relaxed with someone who wasn't Susan or her Mom. Her thoughts were cut off when Harry spoke up once more, this time a bit hesitant, "Hannah, would you like to go fly around a bit after this?"

Hannah smiled, "But Harry, it's getting dark. How do you expect to get the two of us and both of our brooms under your cloak. That's a lot of running about just for a couple minutes of flying, even if I've always wanted to fly with you." She added that last part in a whisper, so she wasn't sure if he hear it.

"Yeah, I actually figured that," muttered Harry. "I was hoping you would be willing to go back up to Gryffindor Tower and come along with me on mine. We can leave through the window by my bed. No one will even see us leave the castle."

"Absolutely," blurted out Hannah. She immediately blushed and covered her mouth. Her enthusiasm was quite obvious to Harry, but he also had slight coloring in his cheeks.

Harry finished his butterbeer and stood offering his hand to Hannah. "Shall we?"

Taking one long drag from her bottle, Hannah took his hand and left the table. "Of course, Mr Potter. You know with all this sneaking around, one would think that you are doing my best to corrupt me," spoke Hannah in a coy voice.

Before they left through the exit, Dobby popped by holding a tray full of treacle tart. Harry grabbed one and popped it into his mouth. "Is it working?" he asked with a sly grin.

"More than you know."

* * *

><p><p>

"Hey Neville!" greeted Harry as the two of them entered the fourth-year boy's dormitory.

Neville was currently laying on his bed, reading a Herbology book that Professor Moody had given him earlier in the year. "What are you two up to? Not here to hang out with little old me are you?" he joked.

"Wouldn't dream of it Neville ol' boy," teased Harry as he rummaged through his trunk for his Firebolt. A quick enlargening charm later and they were ready to go. He swung open the window and hopped onto his broom, extending an invitation to Hannah. "Milady?"

"You are far too kind sir," continued Hannah as she swung over the broom and clutched onto Harry's strong chest. "You definitely picked a beautiful night for this." It was true, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The stars were glittering in a dazzling way.

Harry turned towards her and spoke softly, "Yeah, beautiful." Then they shot out into the chilly air.

**Another one bites the dust. Next chapter will finish the flight any anything attached. Keep up your comments on the story! From your reviews and comments, the alert system was off by 10 hrs. Grrrr. **

**I'll be posting a poll on my profile to see what viewers want to see in a future story. Don't worry, this story will be finished before I start something else.**

**-BB**


	12. Absolutely Perfect

**Here's to all my reviewers! wolfey141, rb2312, the dork knight, Arctic White Wolf, ZanyMuggle, mwinter1, god of all, Benevolent Abyss, lyaser53, akasanta, Ravenmore45, and Muroshi.**

**Chapter 12: Absolutely Perfect**

The wind rustled through Hannah's hair as she gripped Harry tightly. Since Gryffindor Tower was one of the highest points in the entire castle, they were already at a high altitude. Harry was flying lazily through the air, seemingly content to enjoy the calm, but Hannah had other plans first.

"You know I've seen first-years fly better than this. Where's that famous Potter recklessness that I've seen so much over the years," teased Hannah.

She couldn't see the smile that graced Harry's face when she muttered those words, but she knew he got the message when he pulled a quick corkscrew and shot straight up towards the stars. "Keep in mind that you asked for this," joked Harry.

"Asked for what," questioned Hannah, "You haven't done anything that... Ahhhhhhh!" The broom had just lurched straight down and Hannah could feel the weightlessness engulf her body. Harry began to lean forward to pick up more speed, so she decided to mirror his actions in an attempt to take control of her stomach. It was partially successful as she was now only fearful of the approaching ground. Hannah had done her fair share of dives for fun, but this was unreal. The professional class broom and two streamlined passengers were probably reaching a speed of over 150 mph straight down.

Although Hannah's head was buried in Harry's shoulder, she had a great view for their approaching doom. "Pull up Harry!" she screamed. Fifty feet to go. "What are you waiting for!" pleaded Hannah as she clasped her arms around him in a vice grip. At five feet to go, Harry pulled up violently and they could actually feet their feet skim softly across the lawn. His precision was spot on.

As if Harry could feel Hannah's heart beating through their pressed up forms, he started chuckling out loud so that she could hear him. "Were you trying to give me a heart attack?" she screeched in his ear.

"I told you to keep in mind that you asked for that," snickered Harry.

"But you were flying so boring earlier," but she stopped talking for a moment realizing what happened. "You were baiting me to challenge you!"

Harry had a straight face when he turned towards her, "I have no idea what you are talking about." He continued to whip around in the air at high speeds until he started speeding towards the lake. Once they started crossing the water, he spoke up once more, "Stick out your left arm and hold on tight with your right." At seeing her questioning look, he added, "Trust me."

Hannah took one gaze into his eyes and she immediately felt safe. She did what she was told and stuck out her arm. She let out a small yelp when he tilted to the left and her fingers started cutting through the still water. The sensation was so exhilarating, yet calming, that she didn't even notice Harry starting to circle about multiple times.

As the two began to rise again in the air, Hannah gasped at the sight below them: The small ripples caused by her hand had created a swirl effect in the water that was mesmerizing. "That's amazing Harry," whispered Hannah as she hugged him softly.

"Hey Hannah, can you let go of me for a second? I need to get more comfortable."

"Okay." The second Hannah let go of his waist, Harry swung to the side and rolled his body underneath the broom and landed sitting behind her.

Harry reached his arms out in front of her and re-gripped his Firebolt so that their hands were touching. He rested his chin over her shoulder and sighed in her ear. "Much better, wouldn't you agree?"

"Absolutely," gasped out Hannah as she took in his warm breath. They swerved around peacefully, just enjoying each others presence.

Harry tapped her hand and pointed towards Gryffindor Tower. As she began to make her way back, expecting to end the flight, he took control and guided the broom towards the tower's roof. They both slid off the broom and sat on the ledge with their legs dangling.

The two fourth-years sat silently, watching the lake reflect the stars shining above them. Hannah was content to just relax and enjoy the view with Harry. It was obvious to her that he had things on his mind.

"This is where I usually come to unwind on nice nights," started Harry slowly. "I never had a chance to appreciate the beauty of the nighttime before I came here for school. I was always cooped up at my relatives' house, never getting to enjoy time for myself."

"Oh, did your family set an early curfew for you or something?"

"No," chuckled Harry. "They didn't even let me leave the house until I started schooling. After that time, I was bogged down with chores and punishments. So you could say I've led a pretty sheltered life pre-dating Hogwarts."

Hannah looked at Harry's solemn face for a moment. "From what I've gathered, your home life isn't exactly your favorite time of the year." He snorted at her words, but she continued, "You won't be there for your entire existence Harry. You can look forward to the day where you can be free from that life."

Harry's face turned into a grimace, "I've already had those dreams snatched away from me Hannah. Last year, I was one incident away from a better life. A life where my godfather and I could live beneath the stars, free from our troubles."

"Wait, you don't live with your godfather? I just assumed that since you sent that letter to him, then you were living with him."

"No, I live with my aunt and uncle. My godfather is currently... unable to assume guardianship." At seeing Hannah's questioning gaze, Harry smiled ruefully, "My godfather is Sirius Black."

Silence met Harry's statement and he continued to gaze out into the sky. Hannah was finally able to choke out a few words, "Your godfather is notorious mass-murderer Sirius Black!"

"Yes, but, no. He is not a murderer. He was framed by Peter Pettigrew and was sent to Azkaban without a trial. He escaped from Azkaban to hunt Pettigrew and prove his innocence. He asked me to live with him when he becomes a free man."

Hannah relaxed a bit, but continued her questions, "How did he become your godfather? He obviously cares a lot for you if he was willing to break out of Azkaban so he could work towards caring for you."

Harry's eyes were shining with unshed tears as he turned towards her. "He was best friends with my father when they were in school. Professor Lupin and Pettigrew were also friends with them. Together, they were some of the best pranksters in the history of Hogwarts: The Marauders."

"It's obvious that you've inherited a bit of their former skill," teased Hannah as she shoved him playfully. She shivered a bit and tried to pull her cloak tighter. It was getting chilly out as it got later.

Harry shrugged off his cloak and wrapped it around her. "Others would say that I'm more like my mum. It's nice to think we carry the best of our parents within us."

"I know what you mean," commented Hannah with a distant look. Her father was a large influence in her life until he died. The things that Harry was saying were hitting home for her.

"There was a reason for me asking you to come out here," started Harry.

Hannah turned her head towards him once more. "What more could there be? This has already been one of the best nights of my life."

"Well, I was wondering..." Harry collected himself for a moment and Hannah's heart started to race. "Hannah Eliza Abbott, would you do me the honor of being my date for the Yule Ball?" He finished the question blushing madly.

Hannah's eyes lit up and she smiled widely. "Yes! I would love to!"

"Really? That's great!" answered an ecstatic Harry. He quickly leaned over and gave her a warm hug.

As he began to pull away, Harry paused a moment, inches from her face. He then leaned in slowly towards her lips. Hannah tilted her head in response and met him halfway. When their lips finally touched, the world seemed to fade away as they both closed their eyes. All previous troubles were forgotten as both students savored the feeling of their first kiss.

Their mutual bliss ended all-to-soon for Hannah when Harry leaned back with a small smile on his face. "I've been meaning to to do that for a while now," whispered Harry softly.

Hannah put on a small pout and held open Harry's cloak, "Well, that makes two of us Mr. Potter." When he scooted under the cloak with her, he wrapped his arms around her and held her tight. "Now this night is perfect," sighed Hannah as she melted into his embrace.

They sat on that ledge silently for an hour or so, enjoying the presence of each other's company. Neither one wanted to be the one to ruin the moment by speaking.

As it got later into the night, Harry finally broke the calm, "You know I can't dance, right?"

* * *

><p><p>

"Harry, wait a moment." Hannah and Harry were currently standing under the invisibility cloak in front of the Hufflepuff common room. She felt timid for a moment before asking, "Are we going out now?"

Harry tapped his chin in thought. "Would this mean spending a good portion of my time getting to know all of your quirks, holding your hand, enjoying your company, and only having eyes for you?" At seeing her nod, he continued, "Then by my estimate we've been going out for a bit."

She blushed slightly. "Yeah I guess so," commented Hannah with a noncommittal shrug.

"But of course, now I get to do this whenever I can," whispered Harry as he leaned in to peck her on the cheek.

"No," corrected Hannah as she grabbed his tie, "I get to do this whenever I want." She pulled him in for a fierce kiss that lasted a couple seconds.

When she pulled back, Harry seemed to be in a daze. "I agree to your terms. We are definitely going out."

Hannah giggled at his antics and slipped out of the cloak. "Until tomorrow Mr. Potter..." She inched open the common room door and slid inside.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? A student out of bed past curfew," stated a pompous voice.

Hannah looked into the shadows and saw the shrouded form of her best friend. "Quit it Susan!" she snapped, but she couldn't keep the smile off her face.

"What's got you so bloody happy? You look like the cat that caught the canary," mused Susan. "According to my sources, you were last seen in the presence of Harry Potter."

"I was," confided Hannah with a happy glint in her eyes. "He just treated me to the most perfect date that I could ask for."

"Ooh! A date?" squealed Susan. She grabbed Hannah and led her down to a sofa in the corner. She tapped Hannah's leg, "Tell me everything."

Hannah couldn't help the faraway look on her face as she recounted her night, "After we left the library, harry showed me to the kitchens, where we met some interesting house elves that he befriended."

"That's kind of weird, but go on."

She continued, "When we were drinking our butterbeers, he offered to take me on a night time fly around the grounds. I was shocked at first, but how could I turn that down?"

"Yes, yes, your dream date with Harry, I get it."

Hannah shot her a glare that she shrugged off. "Other than the 'demonstration' of his flying prowess, it was one of the most peaceful nights of my life. We were flying amongst the stars, if only for a short while. We landed on top of Gryffindor Tower and got to talking. When we were up there, he asked me to the ball. It was so romantic Susan," gushed Hannah.

"Did you kiss him?" giggled Susan.

Hannah swatted her arm. "A bit curious? But yes, we did kiss under the moonlight... and outside a couple seconds ago." Both girls giggled because that's what girls do in situations like this.

"I'm so happy for you Hannah! After a night like tonight, he's definitely a keeper."

Hannah could only nod at Susan's words as she hugged her legs and whispered to herself, "It was perfect. Absolutely perfect."

* * *

><p><p>

"I'm so happy for the two of you," gushed Hermione as she saw Hannah sit beside Harry and hold his hand. "How did he do it? He won't give me any of the details."

Hannah blushed as she remembered last night, "He showed me one of the most romantic nights of my life."

"Ah," piped up Justin, "He went with lesson two. Smart."

Harry had a confused look on his face, "What do you mean lesson two?"

"Well, there were three tips that these fine ladies gave me when contemplating how best to ask Hermione to the ball. Asking directly, being romantic, and not being a prick," ticked off Justin.

"Well that was actually some very good advice you guys," conceded Hermione. "Speaking of asking people to the ball, there are rumors that Neville has a date." She shot a knowing glare towards the usually timid Gryffindor, who had a slight blush on his cheeks.

"Um, I actually didn't use any of those techniques you described. I, well, um.."

"I asked him," piped up Susan. At the incredulous glares she was receiving, she fired back indignantly, "What? He was taking too long!"

Neville looked sheepish. "I knew Harry was being going to ask romantically, so I tried to think of the same. I guess my plans weren't running fast enough for her."

"Hey, not every boy can be as romantic as Harry," teased Hannah as she kissed Harry on his cheek.

Neville threw up his hands in defeat, "I'm not complaining with the results. I've got a beautiful date for the ball that anyone would be jealous of."

"I'm not," chorused Harry and Justin.

Hannah shot Hermione a smile and they both spoke at the same time, "Good boy."

The whole group laughed at the ordeal and continued their meal in high spirits. All six friends were looking forward to the ball, even the boys who couldn't dance.

**Soooo, how was it. Keep in mind that I am a guy, so give me some feedback. Too soon? Too sappy? Let me know everything and anything! Review!**

**Poll is still open on my profile, check it out if you haven't voted. Updates may slow down a bit now, so don't get too worried if there's a bigger than usual gap in updates.**

**-BB**


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